Why does no-one want me?
by CaptainDingbat
Summary: Charlotte Stark is the daughter of the famous Tony Stark who is excelling at being an Avenger but failing at being a parent. Things are going disastrously wrong at the expense of his kid but he's trying to do the best he can to little avail. So different from his daughter who is shy and introvert, it's easier to pay someone to care for the kid, right...? (I own nothing of Marvel)
1. Chapter 1

****A/N – Hey all. Having a go at putting my take on a slant that's been done many times, but as I said…this is my version! No civil war or Infinity War in my world and I don't own a thing, the OC is a figment of my fervent imagination! I hope you enjoy it, there's going to be a bit of heart ache and drama because that's what we are here for, right? Happy summer folks!**

Chapter 1 – _**The long walk home**_

She knew he wouldn't come. She knew that deep inside yet…she always held onto the hope that just once, this time…he would keep his promise and actually make it to her school on time to pick her up. The rain was beating heavily now on the window, the lightening flashed, then the thunder soon followed. It didn't really matter to the staff of the Greenvale Independent School what time the children were picked up as the staff weren't leaving for the summer vacation until after the weekend. Most wanted to sort their classrooms out and get things organised ready for the new academic school. Now, at 19.00 hours, it was easy to forget there was one student left in the huge institution as they busiest themselves with their own packing and work.

Charlotte pushed herself back from the window, wiped her eyes, determined to not let it bother her too much. But it would, it always did…and no-one in the world, not least the man who was her father…could ever know about it. After all, he was a busy and important man, right? He had better things to do than chase around after a kid. But she adored her father. Everyone loved him, he was always so happy, could speak to anyone and make everyone smile when needed.

Mostly, he sent one of the people who worked for him although they mostly acted like she was an inconvenience to them all. The lady who worked for him was nice, she often took her for an ice-cream or milk shake, but she too…always had somewhere to get to, always busy…always needing to be away somewhere else…

Her luggage had been sent ahead earlier in the day like all the other students. Being away from home for weeks at a time involved a lot of clothes and personal items so the school van had been loaded with cases, bags, boxes and god knows what else….being taken to various homes or delivered to airports, as the rich and famous parents of the inhabitants of the school had more than enough disposable income to warrant such a luxury, god forbid they actually lift their kids suitcase into the boot of the Daimler or Rolls-Royce…

If she didn't get home tonight, she would miss the first baseball practice of the summer vacation. Charlotte loved it. She wasn't much good at all but it was fun and she had a few good friends she hadn't seen in AGES because she was always booted off to boarding school the moment a new term started. A note was left for Mrs Dawson, the dormitory mistress, that she had been picked up and see you next year! Mrs Dawson was too busy watching her soap operas to care as the 11 year old Charlotte Stark pulled on her rain coat, put her backpack on her back and headed out into the blackening night. Although summer was almost here, the storm had brought in black clouds that would mask her sneaking off the premises. Thing was, Charlotte's school was over 30 miles away from Stark Tower, where she lived with her dad, the famous Tony Stark, aka Iron Man…

 **oOo**

Charlotte Stark was the result of a drunken one night stand and Tony had reluctantly taken custody of when her mother dropped her off in reception of the old Stark Industries offices. A DNA test confirmed the kid was Tony's and to avoid a press nightmare, he acknowledged the kid as his own. He tried to be a decent dad but it was hard. He had so many personal demons he felt it in the best interest of his daughter to get her the best nanny, the best school, the best everything. He did love his daughter, there was no question about that, but his fears of the past about his own upbringing had moulded him into the dad he was now. He showered her with affection, when he could. He showed an interest into what she enjoyed, when he could. And he bought her the best of everything. That's all that was needed, right….?

But it was HARD. Charlotte was shy, an introvert who got average grades and did average things. He tried to go to past recitals and school shows but it was painful, so he just kept smiling…and anyway, he was so busy with the Avengers, this took most of his time especially since Peter Parker had arrived onto the scene. Now an official Avenger living in the tower, this kid was something else. A genius, funny, could talk with Tony for hours and…and was so much more like his kid than Charlotte could ever be. Oh, he kicked himself for having such feelings but he felt he had failed years ago with his daughter, he didn't know how to connect with her so it was easy to just…pay for the school and get others to do things for her instead of him.

 **oOo**

'…I'm telling you Cap, he had those seven guys wrapped up so tightly, I almost expected him to grow fangs and start chomping on him like a real spider!' Tony ruffled Peter's hair affectionately and the teenager grinned back at him.

The team erupted with laughter after a successful days avenging. It was time to put the order in for the take-out pizza and everyone was jabbering at once…it was Sam's turn to put the order in.

'…is Charlotte having her usual Tony?' he asked, writing everything down on his piece of paper.

'Hmm?' Tony looked up and Sam stared as Tony's face drained of colour.

'…oh shit! Its end of term today!' without saying another thing, he ran for the balcony, and of course, the Iron Man suit followed close behind, encasing his body then blasting off over the New York skyline.

'…that son of bitch has done it again, hasn't he?' Clint glowered with anger.

'Who knew it was end of term?' Steve suddenly asked.

'I thought it was tomorrow!' replied Natasha.'

'Well shit.. .'…Sam shook his head in frustration as he went to put the order in…

 **oOo**

'Friday, direct call to Charlotte's school please!'

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. HOW could he have forgotten that? Pepper had reminded him about it again only this morning!

'Putting you through now Sir'…

'Great. Ah, Mrs Dawson! This it Tony Stark. I do apologise, I got hung up at the office but I'm almost there…' he gabbled, Mrs Dawson was fearsome, she ruled her dorm with an iron fist. It was hard enough to send Iron Man into orbit…

'Mr Stark? I don't understand. You picked Charlotte up almost two hours ago didn't you? She left a note to say you were here to collect her'…the brisk voice send chills through his blood.

'What? I did no such thing! Are you saying she's gone?'…he pushed the suit harder…

'Yes Mr Stark. Her luggage went home earlier today and her coat and backpack have gone'…

'Right, well, I didn't pick her up Mrs Dawson! Didn't you think to check it was me?'

'…Mr Stark, parents are expected to collect their children on time. We DO have other duties you know, once the students have gone home'. Her voice became clipped, Tony got the feeling he was getting a telling off.

'Fine, fine! Just…ask about, call the police, hell knows where she is!'

The call ended…

'Friday, call Charlottes cell phone'…

'I'm afraid it's off line Sir. The last known location was at the school at 18.43 hours this evening'…

Oh god, oh god…his heart rate shot up drastically, he had difficulty trying to control his breathing…

'Mr Stark, you need to calm down Sir, you will have a panic attack if…'…

Too late. All Tony was aware of was a feeling of complete and utter dread, that the world was ending and there was no way out…Friday, being Friday, took over the suit and ensured it landed safely, the mask opened and Tony literally fell out onto the rain-soaked dirt, scrabbling around as the rain lashed down. He couldn't focus, couldn't do anything, was just aware of Friday's voice…he laid on his back in the sludge, clutching his chest, eyes wild.

It was a few minutes later but felt like a life time before he was able to sit up…breath almost normal as the storm continued to rage overhead…

'Call the team Friday, we've got to find her!'

'Already done Sir, the Quinjet is airborne and according to the schools CCTV, Charlotte wasn't picked up by anyone else, it seems she walked out of the school grounds so the team is how following that road Mr Stark'.

'Damn that girl!' Easier to blame her than his own indiscretions…

Heaving himself up, it didn't take long to once again take to the skies in an attempt to find the missing Charlotte.

oOo

It was around 22.14 when Steve Rogers wrapped a blanket around the tiny 11 year old girl. She burst into tears when the jet landed in front of her. The storm was slowly moving away but the rain was still beating down and Charlotte was drenched to her skin. He picked her up without a word and carried her into the jet where she huddled close to him, frozen to her bones and so, so tired…and deathly afraid of the yelling she knew she was going to get when she got home.

Tony was there, waiting. He too was still drenched as the door to the jet opened and Steve carried Charlotte out. Once in the compound he let rip. Angry at himself for forgetting, it came out in a torrent at the kid stood in front of him…

'WHAT were you THINKING! Yes, I know I was late but to think it was fine to walk home? It's 30 fucking miles for god's sake! ANYTHING could have happened!'

'Alright Tony, take it easy…Charlotte looks like she needs a bath and we are all hungry…' Steve laid his hand on the shaking man's arm. All of them were feeling guilty for not remembering but at the end of the day, it was Tony's responsibility…he made a note to write dates down in his own diary so that this wouldn't happen again.

Tony whipped round, for a minute Steve though he was going to take a pop at him but instead Tony just marched off out of the kitchen towards his own room. Natasha took the terrified and crying Charlotte's hand.

'Come on, let's get you a bath sorted then we can sort something to eat, sound good?'….

After they left, the rest of the team just stared at each other then collapsed into the couches and chairs.

'…what kind or people are we, to forget something as simple as a school closing date?' Sam asked after a long moment of silence.

'I don't forget MY kid's important dates!' Clint snapped, angrily.

No-one answered that, because no-one had an answer…

 **oOo**

Hugging her knees in bed, she had had a hot bath and had now sufficiently warmed up after that and something to eat. She hadn't seen her father since he stormed off and knew he'd be angry again in the morning. He had had to call the whole team out, it had wasted their time, and his. In her mind he wasn't angry about the fact something awful could have happened, it was because Charlotte knew she was just in his way…

Walking to her window, she placed her hands against it and stared outside, even though it was now gone midnight, New York was still alive out there, the lights telling the tale of other people going about their daily tasks.

'Friday?' she asked in her squeaky voice.

'Yes Charlotte?' replied the A.I. in a soft voice.

'…why doesn't anyone want me?'


	2. Chapter 2

****A/N – Wow, thank you for the reviews left by WritingEqualsEscape – wasn't expecting that response but I'm flattered! Hope I can do the rest of the story some justice! And Savily, yeah, I agree, poor Charlotte! Also thanks to those who have followed and made this a favourite, the summer holidays are almost here to I'm planning to get lots of new chapters added. Have a good one folks!**

Chapter 2 – _**When you have the wrong kid and wonder if your biological one really belongs to you…**_

Mrs Isobel Garner had been Charlotte's nanny from when she was a baby until she retired a couple of years ago. Now, she only came back a couple of days a week when Charlotte was home for the holidays. At school, all the students were drilled to within an inch of their lives about sorting their own bedding and washing so on getting home, Charlotte was quite adept at looking after her own laundry. She did of course, have the best of everything, Mr Stark was more than generous when Mrs Garner headed out on a shopping trip with Charlotte, armed with a seemingly endless credit card limit and this morning had been no different when Charlotte mentioned she needed some new summer clothes.

For all she had, Charlotte was far from being a brat. She knew what she wanted and didn't automatically head for the brand names, she just got what she liked the look of and what she needed. You would never know who her father was, and Mrs Garner wasn't the first to question as to whether the DNA test had been the right one. It was obvious Charlotte was his though, she had Tony's eyes and a similar shaped face, it was just her personality, so, so different…

It had been Monday morning when they went shopping, Charlotte was meant to be meeting her father for lunch (he had decided to try a bit harder, it lasted about five minutes) so Charlotte was delivered to the plush Maza restaurant, where she was to wait for him to arrive. It wasn't the first time Charlotte had been there and waited, the staff were very good about that (well, who wouldn't, with Tony Stark picking up the tab…?) and the small girl sat quietly at the table with a glass of lemonade, reading a book she had bought in the city. Mrs Garner was taking Charlotte's new purchases back to the tower, then heading home. She'd be back again on Friday, to attend to anything else Charlotte needed. A trip to the dentist was one of those things on the list…

He arrived of course, all smiles, shades, perfect beard trimmed to perfection and his tailored suit belaying his wealth and status in life. Charlotte watched him take his shades off, grin widely as he talked to the maître d' then strode confidently to the table. She had put her book away and smiled happily at him. But the smile never lasted, because these lunches always took the same routine. It was a miracle they could get pass the starter without his phone ringing meaning all communication between them ended.

'…have you thought about what I said on Saturday Charlotte?'

There was no hug, no kiss, no 'how was your shopping trip and what do you want to do this afternoon', the usual things that parents said to their kids. But actually, did they? Charlotte would watch TV with families on with a deep envy. They did stuff together, talked about the day and just…well, were nice to each other. Was that only TV stuff? Fiction….? Every time Tony spoke to his daughter these days it tended to be critical, not that he thought he was being mean…but because he thought it was the way to boost her confidence, with no clue it was doing the complete opposite.

What she had meant to be thinking about was the rant he had unleashed on the morning after her arrival back from school. He had gone on and on about personal responsibilities, thinking about what she had caused and the trouble they all had to take to find her. After they had had their 'little talk' (Charlotte hadn't gotten a word in edgeways) he had briefly hugged her, albeit uncomfortably…and left her to her own devices. Nothing new there then. At least Charlotte had been able to attend baseball practice that day to run around, spend time with her friends and actually just be a kid. It cheered her up and she went home a lot happier than she had left.

'Yes daddy' replied in her squeaky voice, her smile gone. Why was she here? Why was he even bothering? She wished, not for the first time…her mother had dumped her in a garbage can instead of having to be with him. But for the first time in her young life…the first flicker of hate towards him. Charlotte was growing up, hormones were beginning to stir and puberty wasn't too far around the corner…once all that kicked in, her emotions would be heightened. This feeling unnerved her. She blinked, gulped, and felt ashamed. He was a busy man, she was being selfish, she was just in the way…

'…and what have you decided?' he read the menu with the usual flourish before speaking again…

'You know, you'd think they'd change this a little more often than they do…' He frowned, didn't look at his daughter who was once again, emotionally crushed…

'I won't do it again, I'm sorry'.

'Good, make sure you don't. Do you want your usual? I haven't much time…got lots going on at the lab this afternoon, Peter's made something he wants to show me. So you'll have to eat quickly'.

'I put my school report on your desk Daddy'…she asked, hoping vainly he had read it.

'Did you? I'll take a look later, hang on, phone call! No rest for the wicked!'

Charlotte barely touched her food because as predicted, he held a conference call throughout the whole lunch. The drive back home was in silence as well, the plush car cutting through the traffic and finally arriving in the parking basement of the tower. Once they got back to the living quarters, it was busy as the team were about doing whatever they did when they were home…Charlotte once again vainly tried to tell him about her report.

'I told you I'd look at it later!' He didn't know why, but he snapped. Charlotte shrank back, wide-eyed…silent, he could see she was about to cry.

'Shit, I'm sorry Charlotte, really I am, and it's just I'm so busy and I…' he took a step forward to hug her, mentally kicking himself when Peter burst into the room…

'Mr Stark! I made some new web fluid, it's twice as strong and last much longer…come and have a look!'…

Thank god for Peter Parker.

'I'll look at it the moment I'm back, alright?' the hug stopped, he just patted her on the head then turned and followed Peter out.

Rooted to the spot, the 11 year old girl didn't know what to do. She knew he wished she wasn't here, but if she ran away he'd only find her and drag her back. Why couldn't schools be open all year round? Anything would be better than being here with HIM. Well, if he preferred Peter Parker to her, so be it. She'd ask nothing of him again…it was the first baseball game of the season this next weekend, she had the parental letter in her room, no point in asking him to go, she'd just tear it up and once again she'd be the only kid there with no supporters.

 **oOo**

It took Tony three days to get around to reading his daughters report. It went the same as usual, quiet, no confidence, average grades, average, average, average…nothing about the Starks was average! Did she have nothing from him at all? Next to it, was Peter's report. As Peter's official guardian now, he grinned as he read the teenagers report. Genius, amazing, fantastic, great future ahead of him. He buried the guilt that surfaced in wishing Peter was his own kid, it certainly wasn't fair on Charlotte….

With a sigh (she caused him to sigh a lot) he stood…

'Friday, where's Charlotte right about now?'

'Charlotte is in her room Mr Stark'

Knocking on her door, he stepped in. She was sat on her small couch reading a book, looked up at him when he came in.

'..good report. Nice to see you're behaving yourself and you didn't tell me you joined the art club'. Tony sat down next to her on the couch, Charlotte politely put her book down and looked at him. But she said nothing.

'…so. What do you do in art club? I was never good at art, preferred engines and things. If I painted a cow it looked like a giraffe'…

'We do drawing and things'…

'Have you got any to show me?' Tony was feeling a little guilty over how he had treated her over the report so was trying to make an effort.

'..I left them at school'.

'Oh, you didn't think to bring any home then?' Tony was completely clueless as to why, it never occurred to him that Charlotte knew no-one where was interested so why bother?

Charlotte just shrugged. If she said the real reason why, he'd only yell at her again, calling her selfish, blah blah blah…

'I had hoped I'd get some time so we could go on a vacation but things are crazy around here. Maybe in the fall, huh?' He looked at her, feigned a smile…

'It's OK Daddy. I understand' she looked back at her book.

'Understand what?'

'You're super busy and you don't have time. I know the business and the Avengers are important'.

It was on the tip of his tongue to say you are important to me as well, but…he couldn't. He didn't know why but he just couldn't say it. There was a mental block there. His father's voice in his head reverberated around it ' _Business first before family Tony, ALWAYS. After all, if we don't get the business done, we don't eat, right…?'_

Tony didn't know what to say next so he just gave her a half-hearted hug and left the room. But he didn't see the look of hatred Charlotte sent his way. This time, she didn't try to bury the feelings. She welcomed them…

 **oOo**

There was always a driver at Charlotte's disposal. All she had to do was ask Friday what time and where she was going. Tony wasn't completely clueless though, he had said from the start she wasn't to be dropped off downtown alone or anything crazy like that, wouldn't do his rep any good at all, but it tended to be Mrs Garner who was a chaperone or one of the interns lower down the company. On baseball days though, as long as his daughter was delivered into the hands of the coach, the driver could leave then pick her up later.

This was the case on the Sunday of the first game of the season. This sport allowed the tiny Charlotte to forget who she was or where she came from. This was all about HER, and although she was pretty pants most of the time, it was the feeling of belonging to the team. This little league team was her family during the vacation. She was needed, she was important, she was WANTED. It was the shock of her life then when she scored a cool 13 runs AND was awarded the player of the game trophy!

They had the usual celebration pizza afterwards then the whole team went away happy, excited to be through to the next round.

…except Charlotte Stark.

The light that had been in her eyes died as she and the driver arrived back at the Avengers Tower. The trophy was hidden in the bottom of her closet and after telling her father she was home and had eaten, to which he gave his usual dismissive wave…she went to her room and didn't emerge for the rest of the evening. And things came a head the following morning…

After a good night's sleep, Charlotte decided that actually she WOULD tell her father about the trophy she had won. She had the secret hidden away so tightly she felt like she would burst so off she went, bounded out of bed and blasted into his office…

'Daddy! I have to tell you that…'…

Unfortunately for her, he was in the middle of an important conference call. He gave her the death glare and excused himself, muting the call for a moment.

'How many times! How many times before you get it into your head that you KNOCK and WAIT! I'm got a huge deal to sort here and you just barge in?'

'Yes but I have to tell you that…'

'ENOUGH!' He jumped up, his chair went flying, papers scattered…

'Why in god's name did I get cursed with YOU?!'

He destroyed her soul in about two nano seconds.

 _Why did I get cursed with you…?_

 _Cursed…_

 _She was nothing but a curse…_

Broken, she ran and locked herself in her room. Tony hammered on her door all morning and afternoon, giving her every apology he could think of but nothing would make her come out. It didn't help Tony's case that Clint had heard what he said, they raged and argued all evening, almost coming to blows until the usually calm Bruce got in between them. Tony ended up in the nearest bar and drank himself stupid, and it was both Steve and Sam who retrieved him, pie-eyed, at 2 am the next morning.

It seemed nobody had learned anything about Charlotte's success though until Wednesday morning. Charlotte was off on a zoo trip with a friend's family and Tony had just gotten the papers delivered. His office PA smiled brightly…

'You must be so proud Mr Stark! It's all there, on page two!'

She trotted off smiling as Tony frowned, thinking she must be losing her marbles, until he opened the paper to page two…

He read the headline…

' _ **A chip off the old iron girder…?'**_

 _ **11 year old Charlotte Stark is showing that she too, is one for trying to reach the top during the last Little League NYC Canaries against the Queens Bee Brigade where Stark hit an amazing 13 runs to seal the deal for the Canaries. Determined to succeed (just like her old man) this tiny kid helped her team beat the pants off the opposing team to a huge victory of 21 runs to 17…'**_

Tony gripped the paper. What? She didn't say anything about a game, said it was just practice…he read on…

'… _ **Miss Stark when asked where Stark Senior was, told our reporter he was 'out avenging so that of course takes priority'….'…**_

A rising sick feeling began to envelope him. They weren't 'out avenging' on Sunday, they didn't do ANYTHING on Sunday, he spent it in his lab! Why then did she lie…?

Tony looked at the picture of his daughter. She was holding a trophy high in the air, grinning like no-one had grinned before with all her team mates around her. She looked so happy, so carefree…so different to the kid he saw everyday…the caption read _**'Charlotte Stark, Top match player award'…**_

'Mr Stark, you need to take control of your breathing Sir…'…Friday's voice cut through his tension. Trophy, she didn't have a trophy when she came home, she just…went to her room!

His head was now spinning, that god-awful sickness feeling followed closely after as he fell from his chair, the room closing in, vaguely aware of Friday's voice…as his panic attack consumed him…

 _Oh god, what have I done…?_


	3. Chapter 3

****A/N – Hello again folks! I'm so glad you are all enjoying the start of this story! The reviews are fantastic and please do let me have any ideas you have and please excuse the errors. I've noticed some and HAVE edited but it hasn't updated yet for some reason. This chapter will see things get a little darker in Charlotte and Tony's world, things are going to get worse before they get better…** **Anyhoo, take care everyone!**

Chapter 3 – **I hate you!**

'Take it easy Tony, we're here…..'…with Bruce one side and Steve the other, Tony was helped to his office couch where he sat with his head in his hands, his breathing was almost back to normal but he was now drenched with a cold sweat, heart racing.

'This is getting a bit regular Tony, how much coffee are you drinking?' Bruce was stood behind him, listening to the accelerated heart rate through his stethoscope, the mirrored disk placed on Tony's back.

'Coffee? The usual amount Bruce. You know me! I'm fine…' always trying to brush off the issues, he was a busy man. Business took priority, it HAD to, and there was too much at stake and too many people to worry about. He had a responsibility to make sure…

'Tony!' Bruce snapped to get his attention.

'What? I'm fine now!' He stood quickly.

'I want you down at the med lab, one hour…no excuses else I'll send the big green guy after you!' Shaking his head, he grabbed up his bag and headed out. These people who had little regard for their health, shocking…

Steve had picked up the paper off the floor, was reading page two.

'Was it this that set you off?'

He was replied with Tony snatching it off him and throwing it in the bin.

'Tony, you can tell me to mind my own business but…'

'Damn right you can mind your own business! You're here as leader of the Avengers. Nothing more, no interfering with how I run my family Captain Morality...'

As Steve watch Tony stride out of the office, he retrieved the paper, flattened it out on the desk then took it back to the main living quarters. If Tony wouldn't acknowledge his daughters success, someone had to.

 **oOo**

The lab had been off limits since the day Charlotte could walk. For obvious reasons of course, the danger was one thing and the fact things could get broken. As she walked around the lab now, lights were blinking, things were pinging and the glass view screens were lit up with stuff. It was Peter's work, she recognised that at least, what with the words 'web shooters' and 'web fluid formula'. She didn't understand a thing as she stared up at the strange words and designs, shapes and numbers, all a foreign language to her, but a language she knew her father understood, and it was obvious Peter did too. Was that why he liked Peter more than her?

Charlotte moved to one of the work benches next to the screens, Peter's Spiderman uniform was laid out, the computer control panel that was integrated into it was open, there were fine mechanics tools laid on the material, and obviously Peter was working on it, but had gone to do something else it seemed…

The more she thought about it, the more she resented Peter Parker for being a better kid than she was. He had so much more to offer. Charlotte could read well, draw a few pictures and whack a few baseballs around. That was it. She was just average. That's what her school report said anyway. Peter Parker was a genius, he spoke the language of her father and could make him laugh. He had superpowers and could save people. Charlotte was just a drain on everyone. School had to be paid for, she had to be fed and looked after. She suddenly understood just why her father hated her.

A fine scalpel was laying on the red material of the suit. Charlotte picked it up and stared at it…

 **oOo**

Natasha and Sam were sat discussing something or other when Peter ran into the living area, in tears…and holding his precious suit. It had been shredded, the eyes had been gouged out and the computer panel had been destroyed with a hammer.

'My suit…I….I…look!' he was wrecked, sobbing as both other Avengers hurried to his side to look, leading Natasha to hit the emergency button, they must have an intruder. Who else would have done such a thing?

'Calm down Petey! We'll sort it out!' Tony and the others had come running to see what the fuss was about.

'Friday! Show us the footage of the lab during the last hour…'

'I'm afraid my cameras were off-line Mr Stark, you had ordered a system-wide clean-up at 10.00 hours'.

'Dammit! Can you detect any intruders?'

'No Sir. I have searched all CCTV footage of the tower prior to and after the clean-up program was implemented'.

The team members looked at each other.

'Seems we have an issue. Could be a Hydra spy, you don't always have to do big things to get under someone's skin'. Steve folded his arms, frowning.

'Right, we need to put the tower onto alert, and double check everyone coming in and out. I'll go check the new employee records, see if anything's been missed'.

Steve nodded as Clint left with her.

'I'll go do a recce, see if I can spot anything' Sam strode out of the room heading for the roof as the rest of the team set about trying to find out who had destroyed Peter's suit. Peter himself went with Tony to go see if anything could be salvaged from it. They had other suits as back-up, but a lot of work had been put into these latest upgrades.

 **oOo**

It wasn't often Thor, the God of Thunder just dropped by for a cup of tea and a slice of cake, but he did when he had news of other worlds that he felt the Avengers needed to know. He always arrived on the lawn at the back of the tower, avoided damaging anything of course and on this particular day, it was almost dark as he arrived. With his red cape swishing behind him, Thor began to stride towards the doors when…something caught his eye over by some bushes. Changing direction he silently approached, the sounds becoming obvious as he pulled back the roses. There he spotted a small girl, he recognised at Tony's daughter. He hadn't seen much of her, he knew she was away at school when he was usually around.

She seemed very distressed though as she tried to flatten herself against the wall the rose bushes grew up against. Hugging her knees, Charlotte then attempted to crawl further through the bushes to try to hide from him.

'…why are you hiding? Surely nothing can be so bad the daughter of the Iron Man has to crawl in among the prickles of the rose bushes?'

He smiled as he held back the bushes, down on one knee, his deep voice quiet.

Her crying intensified he offered his other hand after setting down his hammer.

'….I….I did…something t-terrible! They…they will all hate me!' More tears, more wailing…

'Nothing is so terrible it cannot be undone' another smile as he buried the thought of his troubled brother, Loki.

'It…it was! I can't ever go back! He hates me anyway!' Her crying rose an octave as Thor carefully leaned into the bushes and gently coaxed the weeping Charlotte out. He stayed on one knee, pulling her into a hug, she wept all over the shoulder of his crimson cloak. A minor issue though…

'So what will you do?' he asked, keeping his voice low.

'I'm going to leave when it's dark enough! I…I'll find somewhere else to live!' Her breath heaving, he tightened his arm around her.

'Running away is never the answer, Little Stark. You need to face your troubles head on. I can face them with you'…at that comment, Charlotte stepped back. He was almost at her height whilst kneeling down, looked up into her red face, her eyes glassy with tears.

'Why would you…you….don't know me!'

Thor then placed a huge hand on each of her shoulders.

'A problem shared, is a problem halved. We all make mistakes, you've taken the first step by realising you made a mistake. The next bit is the hardest. Telling others. But then you can move forward'. He smiled again, pleased to see her breath was slowing, she was becoming calmer and then she wiped her face.

Before Charlotte got a chance to reply, they both heard a shout from the door as the garden flood lights illuminated the scene. Thor stood, holding Charlotte's hand as he saw Tony fast approaching with the rest of the team.

'Hey Hammer Man, what brings you….Charlotte? What are you doing out here?'

With a wail, Charlotte tried to run, but was prevented by doing so by Thor. Holding her hand firmly, he wrapped his cape around her…it seemed to stay her flight instinct for the moment.

'Little Stark here was hiding in the rose bushes. I believe she has something to tell you, although I am unaware of her predicament. She feels what she has done is unforgivable'…

There was a long, long pause. The penny dropped for Tony. It spread like an electric current through the whole team and Peter gave a wail.

'Charlotte killed my suit? Why?' the teenager looked crest fallen…

The years of feeling worthless, feeling useless and unwanted exploded out of the small 11 year old Charlotte. She pushed away from Thor and screamed…

'I hate you! I hate you! He wants you to be his kid, not me! I wish I was dead!...'…

A stunned silence and as Tony took a step forward to speak, Charlotte turned her anger onto him.

'Why didn't you have me adopted? I wish I had never been born!' with that, Charlotte turned to run away…

'What the actual FUCK?' Tony exploded, started to give chase but found Thor in his path, he placed a hand on Tony's chest.

'I will go. Too many emotions from both sides will not improve this situation'.

'Hey, YOU don't tell me how to deal with my kid, Hammer Head!' he bellowed up into the God of Thunder's face.

Thank god for Steve and Clint practically dragging Tony into the building to avoid a punch up. Natasha, Sam and Bruce stood with their mouths open, what the hell had happened here tonight? Thor had turned, heading in the direction Charlotte had run to. Peter walked sadly back to the door that led to the tower.

'…I think they need some intervention' Sam sighed, this was his line of work from his previous career, though he didn't think Tony would be very receptive about it.

'We should have seen this coming' replied Bruce, mentally kicking himself and scratching his head.

 **oOo**

It was stalemate between Tony and his daughter from then on in. Sam had tried to reason with him but Tony would have none of it. He was even threatening to evict them all if they didn't back off. They could go live in the compound if they didn't keep their noses out of his personal affairs.

There was no point in asking Charlotte about destroying the suit. They had all heard her reasons why…and he decided that the best place for Charlotte to be would be at a summer camp of some sort. Without telling anyone, he got his PA to do some research and within hours, he walked into Charlotte's room. She looked up, flinched, not sure what she was expecting…as he threw the brochures down onto her small table.

'You're obviously not happy here. I can't send you back to school so chose one of these. Tell me which one you want, I'll have it arranged'.

Before he left he turned to look at her, she stared again, huge eyes.

'…to say I'm disappointed is an understatement Charlotte. You might be mad at me, but you had no right to do that to Peter'.

The door closed with a slam, causing Charlotte to jump.

No more tears, no more wasting her emotions on this man who was unfortunate enough to happen to be her father.

It was over in more ways than one…


	4. Chapter 4

****A/N – Hey all! Thank you SO SO SO much for the awesome reviews, follows and favourites of my story. I do apologise if I'm causing you grief (..not really, ha ha!) but it's not over quite yet. The very valid question of where is Pepper was raised. She WAS mentioned early on but I knew it would be hard to have Tony get away with being an ass if she was about too much, so in my little AU, they are having a hiatus in their relationship but Pepper is still CEO of Stark Industries. She will make an appearance at some point or other so never fear!** **All might seem fine at the end of this chapter but the plan is to…well, I don't want to give too much away so you will have to be patient! Hugs and love…Captain Dingbat XXX**

 **Chapter 4** – Realisations and regrets…

Tony drummed his fingers on his desk, staring at the screen. He didn't know why but he just couldn't concentrate today. Wasn't the fact he was tired or overworked, things had been a bit easier just lately, especially since Pepper was heading up the top job these days. Their personal relationship had cooled, but as the CEO of Stark Industries, he couldn't ask for better. She was at this moment over in Asia, overseeing the set-up of a new branch of his computing section. Saved him a ton of work…

Pushing back his chair he went across to the huge expanse that was the window, looking over the skyline of New York City and placed his hand on the sill, staring down. He remembered when Charlotte used to come into his old office when she was tiny, they would sit and try to count the lights at night when they came on. They would spend hours there, Charlotte would place her hands onto the glass and giggle like no-one had giggled before. Her laugh had been infectious and Tony could honestly say he didn't remember the last time he had heard her laugh. Forehead against the glass, he closed his eyes and allowed his mind to wander off to the past.

 _Oh Charlotte, I'm so sorry. I failed you, I promised I would never become like HIM, but I'm worse…_

Tony suddenly stood upright and went marching off back to the living quarters. No-one was around much today. All the team members were busy doing their own thing and he knew Peter was working with Bruce as he too, was on summer vacation. Not that anyone was talking to him much at the moment, after sending his daughter away most of them…including Peter…seemed to have sent him to Coventry. Not that he was bothered, he was a big boy and could cope.

He paused at the door to Charlotte's room, before carefully opening the door and stepping inside. The room was huge, not only did she have her own plush bathroom, a huge closet housed her clothes, with extra storage to hold her personal things. Colourful pictures adorned the cream painted walls and the drapes were a soft lilac colour to match the bedding. He felt like he was invading her privacy as he opened the closet door, and spotted all the toys she had been collecting over the years. Dolls, teddy bears, her fluffy elephant. Silently taking the elephant out, he stared at it. He had bought her this for Christmas years ago. It used to be on her bed, why wasn't it now? Was it because she was growing up? My god…was he so blind he was missing that? But she was still so small, so young…and needed him but he was afraid. He was quite honestly…a coward.

Tony gave a gulp, gripping the elephant tightly…he then spotted something glinting in the bottom of the closet, under some shoes. A trophy…was this the trophy in the picture? The one she had tried to tell him about but he had cruelly brushed her aside? No wonder she had killed the suit, he had put Peter on a pedestal that his small daughter had no chance of reaching. Jesus Tony, when did you turn into your old man…? He muttered to himself under this breath. The trophy was placed on her dresser as he sat on the pink stool facing the mirror.

Photographs adorned the dresser, he had never really noticed before. And they were mainly pictures of him and Charlotte from years gone by but one particular picture caught his attention as it was laid flat on the dresser, picture side down, so he reached forward to pick it up.

It was one of those cheap magazine frames, an Iron Man one. It had a cartoon illustration of Iron Man, then you added a picture of your own, it looked like Iron Man had his arm around whoever was put in the picture. Only Charlotte hadn't added a picture of herself to it, it was a picture of Spiderman.

Iron Man and Spiderman. With Charlotte's curly writing underneath it…

 _If I was Spiderman he would love me…_

 **oOo**

'Here you are'…

Tony dropped the picture and almost fell off the stool.

'Christ Cap, if you want to kill me off, try a more conventional way!' shaking himself out of it, Tony picked the picture up and placed it back on the dresser.

Steve was in the doorway, leaning against the frame with his arms folded.

'What are you doing in here?'

Tony turned to look at him.

'Why are you asking that?'

'…because it's not your usual haunt, is it?' he said, a hint of menace in his voice. Tony needed waking up regarding his kid, before she was so emotionally damaged she would be beyond repair.

'If your aim was to make me feel shitty, it worked, Captain High Ground! I don't claim to be the best dad of the year you know!'

'It's not a competition, but Charlotte thinks it is, obviously, and she's been beaten into last place and lost'…Steve pushed himself away from the door frame and came into the room, he picked up the picture Tony had just been looking at.

'…and she's lost to Spiderman, hasn't she?'

Tony angrily snatched the picture off Steve and shoved it in his pocket.

'What the hell do you know? I don't need a lecture about how to raise my kid!' it wasn't his best response but a voice at the back of his head was agreeing with Captain America, and Tony didn't like it one little bit…

'What do I know? I know that your daughter is in desperate need of her father who seems to have brushed her to the side because someone else came along. Pete's a great kid but so is Charlotte. You won't like this but you know who I see? Howard. You whine and moan about what a crap father he was but you need to look in the mirror Tony, because at this moment when I look at you…he's the guy I see'…

Steve didn't hang around for an answer. Tony hated being proved wrong and would argue that hot was cold if he felt he was going to be proved incorrect. He expected Tony to bellow something back but it never came, Tony had stayed in the room.

 **oOo**

'Really Mr Stark, it's not professional of you to come here, dragging your daughter back home when you practically begged me to take her in even though we were full!'…

Tony had travelled over 200 miles to the summer camp Charlotte had finally chosen. Getting verbal earache from the camp principal wasn't worrying him, it was how Charlotte was going to greet him. Telling no-one, Tony had booked the jet and had flown into the nearest airport, arranging a car to take him to the camp. He was wearing a basic T-shirt and jeans, his sneakers were well-worn and he needed to sort his hair and beard out, but this couldn't wait. His choice of clothing was to avoid being too conspicuous, he wanted to get there, grab Charlotte, and leave…

'I assure you Mrs Frazer, I will compensate you more than enough, something's come up and Charlotte's…needed at home now'…he beamed widely, the promise of hard cash seemed to appease the woman who grunted and stood to lead the way to where Charlotte was.

'Her group are down in the baseball park, it's this way'.

It was quite the walk through the pine trees. At various places, clearings showed log cabins, various adventure obstacles and kids were running wild all over the place. As they reached the edge of where they were playing baseball, Tony hesitated as he watched.

There was Charlotte with a bunch of other kids, practising her swings, concentrating really hard and…giggling. There was the giggling. The giggling he hadn't heard in a very long time. Guilt flooded him again as he continued to watch.

'Do you want me to call her?'

'No…no thanks. I'll watch a few minutes. Thanks Mrs Frazer, I'll let you know when we are leaving'….

'Right, well, I'll get someone to organise her things, you can't go into the girls dorm, for obvious reasons…'…she gave him another glare like he would be just the type of person to do such a thing, then headed back the way she came leaving Tony alone. He quickly moved to the bleachers, sitting down and watching. Charlotte still had no idea he was there.

It had been a long time since he had just sat and watch his daughter just be a kid. He realised this wouldn't last much longer, once she hit the teens, things would be so, so different. Tony had to be careful, having a panic attack here wouldn't do at all…he had to distract himself and Charlotte gave him the perfect chance by whacking the ball far across the field and her father responded by jumping up and cheering loudly, clapping as he strode quickly towards her…

Charlotte was wearing a helmet so was unsure of who was making the noise so she took the helmet off and looked around. On realising who it was, she froze as her father approached. He stopped a couple of feet away, he felt as terrified as she looked. My god, did she really actually fear him now…? His stomach did a few somersaults as he looked down at her, managed to drag out a smile.

'….what are you doing here?' Charlotte let the baseball bat drop to the floor as she looked up, she only reached the height of the top of his abdomen and her quiet squeaky voice was wobbling.

'…I've come to see you. Well, actually…I've come to take you home. Charlotte I…'….a deep breath then he got down closer to her height, on one knee…

'I'm sorry. I'm a crappy dad and I've let you down. I'll tell you the truth, being a dad terrifies me. It was easier when you were small, when you didn't talk. I know that sounds like an excuse but it's the truth. Ya know, I find it easier to fight baddies than to ask you how you feel because I'm afraid of the answer'…

Charlotte, being only 11 years old, wasn't quite understanding this deep psychological baring of Tony's soul so he tried something a little different.

'..what I'm trying to say is, I'm going to try harder to be a better dad for you Charlotte. You're my angel, you always were and you always will be. I just….you need to help me be better, okay?'…

A long pause, and Charlotte just responded by putting her arms around him, laying her head on his shoulder and closing her eyes.

Tony couldn't help the tears that formed in his eyes as he hugged her back tightly, so tight he got worried she couldn't breathe but she was okay…stepping back he grinned…

'…so how about we leave this crazy place and head back where we belong? You've got a baseball game to narrate. I want to know exactly how you won it'…

 **oOo**

As father and daughter arrived back home as Stark Tower, Tony knew it was going to be a long hard road. His demons still plagued him and would for a long time. The issue now, was to try to erase the damage he had already caused, who knew just how deep the mental and emotional scars ran through Charlotte's heart, a road as rocky as the Himalayas lay before them, but he was determined to scale each and every peak no matter the difficulty of the mountain he had to tackle…


	5. Chapter 5

****A/N – Looked like all was going to be fine, didn't it…? ~cackles evilly~ Well, it will be for a bit! Going to push it on a little bit…but then all hell is going to break loose…ARGH! Again, thanks for your continued support!**

Chapter 5 – **A miss-heard conversation…**

Tony kept his word and tried his best. For a bit. On arriving back at the tower the rest of the team welcomed Charlotte back and they celebrated with a BBQ in the huge grounds and played baseball afterwards. Charlotte was beaming from ear to ear and attached herself to Tony like a limpet. To be honest, he found it wearing, she was suddenly very needy and insecure but…he guessed that was probably his fault though in time…he hoped…PRAYED…she would not need to be such a sucker fish.

They went out for lunch more often, he kept the phone calls to an absolute minimum and they even went to Disneyland for a week. That was difficult…they had 'Ironman' there with fans having pictures taken who spotted Tony a mile off, then they were swamped…Charlotte was almost knocked flying so he hoisted her up and spirited her away.

Sitting in a café he sat next to her, hugged her tightly…

'Alright, calm down, they've gone now. Sorry about that, I forget…I'm used to it, and you're not'…he kissed her cheek as she grabbed him tightly.

He decided he better call home and get Happy out here, if she got hurt…he couldn't cope with more guilt.

Apart from that little episode, the rest of the week went well, followed by a shopping trip in Miami then they flew home on a Friday morning. Charlotte was back playing baseball and she needed to practice on Saturday morning before the game on Sunday.

As Charlotte bounded off to take her new clothes they had bought to her bedroom, Tony collapsed into the couch in the main living area. He laid back his head, eyes closed…

'Geez, I need a beer!'

'Looks like you have a good time Tony'. Bruce was the only other occupant there at that moment, he obliged Tony's request and passed him the much-needed beverage.

'So, how did it go?' Sitting opposite with this own beer, Bruce lent back in the easy chair, feet up on the foot stool.

'…hard work. She's suddenly become a limpet. Everywhere I go, she needs to be there. Everything I do, Charlotte wants to be alongside'…he took a long drink of his beer. That certainly hit the spot.

'What else do you expect? From having nothing, to everything, she's insecure, probably thinks you're going to disappear in a puff of smoke at any moment'….Bruce raised his eyebrows.

'I guess so. Now don't look at me like that! I'm finding it hard, being a parent it the hardest job there is, and you know and I know…I've made a few mistakes so far..'

'A few? Just a few?' Bruce answered sarcastically.

'Yeah, don't start Mr Green Guy! I'm trying! It's going to be hard to maintain this though'…

Bruce sighed, shook his head then spoke again.

'..and what about Charlotte? Apart from being clingy?'

Tony paused, breathed in deeply.

'…I don't honestly know. She isn't saying much, I thought she might talk a bit more but nothing much yet. Is it possible do you think…to have two people so closely related as we are but then are so different?'…

He looked around to check there were no little ears about.

'…I don't know how to connect with her Bruce. I can talk science, I can talk math. That's the language I understand, but she doesn't. I can't talk about anything else with her. I don't know if I can stand talking about books and baseball, and admire her artwork with a false smile. I'm not the type to help her put ribbons in her hair or trail round the stores picking out t-shirts with unicorns on them. I don't know what the common ground is. She asked about changing schools to a day school so she could be here all the time but I don't think I can cope with that!'…he threw his hand up in exasperation.

'Well, I'm going to be blunt with you Tony. You're going to have to find it. Her insecurity and the fact she clinging to you is giving me the warning signs of possible future anxiety. Do you want her to have the same…..issues you have?' Bruce was now leaning forward, feet back on the floor.

'Of course not. I just wish she wasn't just average…'…

 **oOo**

'Friday? Where's Charlotte?' It was almost dinner time, the team were all arriving back and as it was Steve and Sam's turn to cook dinner, Tony and Peter were checking out a new complex formula on Peter's tablet.

'…what if you expand that dimension on the x axis?' Tony pointed and Peter obliged…then grinned when it obviously looked better.

'Charlotte is not in the tower Mr Stark'….

'What? Well, where is she?' he quickly stood, the general chatter from the others instantly stopped.

'Unknown Mr Stark'.

'Why the hell didn't you tell me when she left?'

'…that protocol has been disabled'.

'By whose authority?' he yelled…

'Yours Sir. You disabled it one hour and 34 minutes ago in your office'…

A thunder of feet as the whole team high-tailed it to the office, Friday displayed the footage on the huge screen there, and sure enough, Charlotte, with a backpack on her back…could be seen with her father's notebook, tapping into his computer, obviously using his codes to disable the protocol that always informed Tony of when she left the tower.

'NOW what the fuck is going on?' Tony yelled again as he next galloped to his daughter's bedroom, slinging the door open so hard, it bounced off the wall and almost wiped Tony out as it came swinging back towards him again. He ran to her closet, whipped the door open to see some of her things missing, and of course…started to panic…

Bruce took over thank goodness, the attack didn't last long as he was there, and shooing all the others out then when Tony had calmed down enough, Bruce passed him the letter on Charlotte's dresser. Addressed to 'Mr Tony Stark'.

 _Dear Mr Stark,_

 _I am leaving and I am never coming back. I am sorry I will never be more than average and I am sorry you find it so difficult to care for me. Now I am gone, you can sell all the new clothes to get your money back. Don't come and find me._

 _Charlotte (no name)_

After staring at the note, he slowly crumpled it up, before dropping it on the floor…

'I can't do this anymore Bruce, that girl causes me more stress than anything else that comes our way…'…

 **oOo**

Luckily being so warm, the first night out in the open was fine. She had her sleeping bag all wrapped up and spent the night under a tree. But New York City at night is no place for a small girl such as Charlotte. With no clue the team had also been out all night, searching for her…she woke the next day, hungry and thirsty. With the grand total of $45 from her piggy bank that had been birthday money, she knew she needed to be careful with it, so just drank water out of a water fountain in a public convenience and bought a bag of chips for breakfast.

So what now for Charlotte? After hearing what her father had said, she had returned to her room, once again broken. Once again emotionally wrecked after being built up thinking everything would be fine…but hearing the voice of the person she adored and loved with all her heart, the person she trusted with her life…say those words 'I wish she just wasn't just average' had once again made her feel like he had ripped her heart out and handed it back in a paper bag.

Well, no more! The hate was back with a vengeance. Never again did she want to see him, with any luck someone would blow him up when he was in his Ironman suit. The light had died in her eyes. It would be a long road back for Charlotte Stark to feel 'normal' once again…

It wasn't made public knowledge she was missing. Tony was terrified it would make her an easy target for blackmailing him, someone only needed to snatch her off the street and that would be it, a huge ransom note would be winging its way to him and that would about finish him off.

How the hell did she hear him? He had checked, obviously not well enough it seemed. He hadn't meant it that way! He was just voicing his feelings to Bruce, just vocalising what that damned school report had said. It didn't mean he didn't love her any less, did it? Now he was getting grief from the team again about what he must have done. It didn't help matters when an issue over the Pacific Ocean came in that required the Avengers attention. It was one of those crappy situations that needed them all, the search for Charlotte was passed over to the other enforcement agencies, Tony would pick it up again the minute he was back…

 **oOo**

'…it's a little late for you to be out here, isn't it?'…

A well-dressed man had found Charlotte when she was walking in the suburbs of New York. At almost 22.00 hours, she had been ducking into doorways every time she had seen a police car, she didn't want to be dragged back to the tower!

A little wary of the man, Charlotte took a step back, clutching her back pack.

'…I live here!' she squeaked, pointing to a door way.

'Ah, now that's not the truth, is it Miss Stark?' the man smiled widely.

'How do you know who I am? I'm not going home!' she burst into tears, as the man offered his hand.

'Oh, you don't need to worry about that. I don't like your dad either. Are you hungry? I bet you are! I promise I won't hurt you and I won't send you back either. Come on, let's got find some food, I think it's going to rain soon, don't you?'…

He hadn't believed his luck when his sources told him Stark's kid had run away from home. He had been waiting for a chance to strike back at the egotistical maniac for years, he wasn't going to let this chance slip away. In consequence then, he had pulled out all the stops to find her before Stark did, and he had struck lucky…

 _If you ever talk to strangers Charlotte, I'll set the Hulk on you!_

 _Don't EVER get into the car with someone you don't know! Ironman will kick your ass!_

… _if something happened to daddy's little angel I don't know what I'd do Charlotte…_

Her father's warnings bounced around in her head. He had always told her so vehemently, she had promised faithfully to never break the rules.

But little angel? That was a laugh. There was no room for Charlotte in Tony Stark's life anymore. Her eleven year old mind convinced itself that she was a complete and utter burden on her father. He would be glad she had gone…his promises meant nothing. She recalled a Mary Poppins quote. 'A pie crust promise. Easily made and easily broken'…

Charlotte slowly put her hand out and took the stranger's hand.

'My names Justin, Justin Hammer..'…

 ****Authors/Note – ARRRRRRGGHHHHH! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N – Hahahahahahahahaha! I'm so sorry WritingEqualsEscape! Your review has had me rolling around for the last ten minutes in tears! I didn't think I'd get a new chapter done before Monday as I have an insanely busy weekend but school's now out for the summer so no going into work for six weeks…yippee! I apologise to you all, yes, that was mean of me. Your reviews fill me with joy! I can only hope this next chapter serves as some sort of olive branch…for now.**

Chapter 6 – **Trying again, take two…**

Charlotte woke with a jump, for a minute confused about where she was. But it was okay, she was home and in her own bed. Searching around, she found her fluffy elephant escaping under her quilt and snuggled back down into the bed. Her cuts and bruises hurt like hell still, Bruce had washed and treated them, a couple had dressings on but he had told her he was confident it wouldn't hurt for long.

She had been missing from home for the grand total of four days, and in those four days, the shit had hit the fan like it had never hit the fan before.

So what had happened when the villainous Mr Hammer had tracked Charlotte down and spirited her off to the skyscraper his own technology company was housed in, his penthouse at the top was luxury beyond compare and sitting on a chair at the kitchen island, Justin had slid a glass of milk across to the daughter of his arch rival and enemy, Tony Stark. His henchmen were lurking about somewhere as he then went to prepare his 'demands' of Tony.

'…boss, is it wise staying here with the kid once Stark has the demand? You know this is the first place he is gonna look'…Jacob, the big burly security guard spoke quietly into Justin's ear. It was them, against Ironman, Justin's latest 'robotic soldiers' were good, but against the Avengers, it would be a blood bath. Or more likely an oil bath…

'Before we deliver that demand, we'll all be long gone. Stark and his puppets won't know what the hell hit them. This place will be fortified with the drones, Jacob. Have faith!'

The last thing Jacob had was faith, but he wasn't the boss and if he wanted to keep getting that big pay check, then he needed to continue to follow orders.

 **oOo**

Tony had been through the verbal wringer a dozen times by the time he started searching again after they got back from the mission. There had been no sightings at all according to the police but Friday had picked up CCTV footage of various sightings of Charlotte around the Brooklyn area, then there was nothing. He wasn't sleeping, he wasn't eating…and the whole team took it in turns to go searching. After Clint had given Tony a black eye. It had started with Clint yelling at Tony, calling him a disgrace, didn't deserve to be a father…blah blah blah…leading to Clint finally popping him one and being dragged off by Steve and Sam. Tony this time didn't retaliate with his usual egotistical verbal comebacks because he knew he deserved it. Instead he just activated the suit and shot off in search of his daughter.

For two days they searched, and all the while Justin was preparing his demands. Charlotte was fed, watered, had a fancy room BUT…something felt WRONG. She was having second thoughts about running away. Although she still felt the same about her father, the hatred was still there and the hurt still so raw, she missed her bedroom, her things and she missed the other team members. So she had decided to run away from HERE too, only to find she had been locked in the room.

NOW what?

It was Peter who saved the day. He was doing a patrol checking out old disused warehouses, seeing if Charlotte was hidden away in there somewhere. His spider senses picked up voices far away, so he silently swung across to the dockside then slowly descended from his web, hanging upside down so he could hear, probably burglars hiding their stash or something…

'…the kid is fine. The boss said the drones need to be set up THEN he will send the demand. Stark won't know what hit him. We leave in the morning at 06.00 hours so make sure you are ready to create that diversion. This place will burn well. There are enough explosives in this bag to sink a battleship. Set the time for 05.30 hours, the Avengers will be distracted for when we get the get out of the building. The boss will send his demand at 10.00 hours'…

They must be talking about Charlotte, Peter guessed, keeping a lid on his excitement…

'Karen' he whispered to his suit's A.I…

'Yes Peter?'

'Can you zoom in on the guy who is talking, get a pic of his face then run a scan to see if there's a match'…

'Of course Peter. Scanning now….match found. He is Jacob Green. Known association with Justin Hammer'….

'That's it!' he whispered in excitement…

'Hammer has her! Contact Mr Stark, she must be at Justin Hammer's building!'

'Contacting Mr Stark now…'…

Tony was practically being force-fed by Bruce and Sam when the call came through. They were having a break whilst Clint, Natasha, Wanda, Vision and now Rhodey (who had been away on army business) were heading up the current search. Steve was currently somewhere or other…

'Mr Stark, Peter would like to talk to you'…

'Alright…' he was exhausted, his energy level was depleted…

'Mr Stark! There's a bunch of guys here who are planning to blow up the warehouse but the drones will be ready and they said….'

'Woah woah, calm down Spiderling! Who is doing what….?' God, NOW what?

'Justin Hammer has Charlotte! He's going to blow up the warehouse docks tomorrow morning to create a diversion when they get her out of his building…then you'll get a ransom demand and his drones will be waiting for you!'

Tony was up and out the door before anyone could stop him…just as Steve had come back in to the living area and caught Peter's last few words.

'Tony, stop! We need a plan!'…Steve yelled after him as Ironman shot off the balcony towards Hammer's installation.

'Friday, call the jet back to pick us up!'

oOo

Windows smashed, bricks exploded and beams fell. Furniture splintered and by the time Tony had finished, the damage to the Hammer Empire was moving into the millions. But of course trifles like that never bothered Tony Stark.

Justin wasn't prepared for this attack but he hit the emergency button that activated the drones, good job the rest of the team arrived when they did because all hell was breaking loose and it was Peter who was tasked to track Charlotte down and get her out of there….that was easy enough, there was only a locked door between her freedom and Spiderman. He booted the door open and on seeing, she burst into tears and ran to him, hugging him tightly. Seemed like the hatred she had sent his way had dissipated for now, but she was so scared of the noise and the fact she was locked up with no idea as to what was going on.

'I have Charlotte, we are heading to the….'

An explosion by one of the drones being destroyed knocked them both over, Peter automatically covered Charlotte with his body to protect her from the falling debris, but she suffered minor cuts and bruises, nothing that couldn't be dealt with once they were safe.

Peter was disorientated, he rolled to the side, silent for a few moments and Charlotte jumped up, she grabbed his hand and tried to pull as a Drone landed in the corridor where the walls had crumbled away…

'Get up! Get up Peter! We have to go!...'…

'Are you alright Peter?' Karen's voice jolted him out of his shock and he looked up just in time to see Charlotte standing bravely between him and the Drone. She had picked up a piece of wood, in order to swing it at the advancing machine but Peter was now awake sufficiently to fire a stream of webbing at its visor, it was temporarily blinded, giving him enough time to grab Charlotte and get the hell out of there…

 **oOo**

That had been the previous evening. They had gotten home so late, no-one had barely spoken apart from Tony speaking to Charlotte as Wanda made hot drinks for them all as Bruce tended to Charlotte's cuts and bruises.

'..you won't be getting out the tower again that easily again. We'll talk in the morning about this letter and what you thought you overheard…'…

She had expected yells and screams, a telling off to end all telling offs…but it didn't come.

Instead, he waited until she had changed for bed then came in and sat on the edge of her bed, she looked at him, wide-eyed, scared. He pulled her into a hug and said nothing for a long time, before leaving silently. He didn't trust himself to say anything just yet.

Now it was almost 11 am and as Charlotte got out of her bed, Friday spoke.

'Good morning Charlotte. Mr Stark would like you to shower and dress, then meet him in his office'.

His office…? Was this going to an official yelling then? Her anger and hate was still bubbling. Yet…she was so happy to be back, she had wanted to hug everyone last night and tell them she loved them all. Why was she so confused? Why did she keep going from hate and anger to love and happiness then go back again? Was she going crazy?

The shower was welcome although her cuts were stinging like hell then after dressing in jeans and the famous unicorn t-shirt she loved so much, she pulled on her sneakers and headed to her father's office.

She paused outside, remembering to not barge in…and knocked on the door with a shaking hand.

'Come in!' came his loud voice, then Charlotte slowly opened the door and stepped inside, to see a small breakfast table set up. He was sat there, in casual clothes and reading a newspaper. He never had breakfast here…

'Thank god, you're awake in one piece! I thought we could do with some privacy…' the paper was set down and he stood and grabbed her up in a hug. He held her there for a long time…Charlotte didn't respond, didn't hug him back but he knew he didn't deserve that. Small steps…

All her favourite food was on the table. Nice and hot and as they ate…her father spoke.

'You weren't meant to hear what I said. Yes, it wasn't nice for you and it wasn't right but I had to have an outlet of my feelings at that moment in time. I don't expect you ever to talk to me again but you need to know. I DO love you and I know I keep getting it wrong but there will never be an opportunity for you to run away again. Understand?' He paused eating his pancakes, and raised an eyebrow as he looked at her. He gave a gulp, she looked so small and so young…here he was, Ironman, and he couldn't even protect his daughter. He was a disgrace…

Charlotte looked back at her pancakes. She just shrugged. She knew it wouldn't last. She knew in a few days she would have pissed him off and once more he'd be moaning about how hard it was to be a parent. This was going to be it she supposed until she was old enough to leave home.

'…please tell me how you feel Charlotte'…

Charlotte pushed her half-eaten pancakes around her plate for a few minutes, then she looked up and put her fork down.

'I wish…I wish you had had me adopted when I was born. My mommy didn't want me and you don't want me. You're too busy and important to have children. Peter is much better and I don't mind now. He helped me get out so I know now why you like him so much, he's nice and I'm sorry I said horrid things to him'…she paused, to see how he would respond.

'Go on…' Tony was doing a good job keeping a check on his emotions, though he was aware his cheek was twitching and his breathing was becoming heavy…

'When I'm not at school next holidays, I don't mind going to the camp, it was good, I liked it. Then I don't have to be home and you don't need to worry about me being here. At Christmas I can stay at school, Mrs Nelson stays with some of the other girls who can't go home, I can stay with them. Same at Thanksgiving and other holidays. Then when I'm big and working, I can move out and you don't ever have to see me again'…

Jesus. Christ. Quite frankly…..shit.

He deserved every word. She was sat there, this tiny kid who had depended on him and basically cut herself off from him. Where did they go from here…?

'You're not going to camp. You're not staying at Christmas or any other holiday because you're staying here. We are going to look for a day school, there's a few good ones about…I don't want you being away. I know you hate me and don't trust me Charlotte but I'll make you see that again one day, even if it kills me'…

'…when Peter told me Justin Hammer had you, I thought I was going to throw up. I realised that if anything happened to you, it would break my heart…'…

Silence.

Charlotte ate another pancake…

Tony then said what his dad never could…

'I love you, you're my world'…

She snapped her head back up to look at him. His eye was blackening nicely now, he too had a few cuts and bruises…

Tony took a sip of his coffee and smiled.

'We must both look like we got mangled in a lawn mower'

Charlotte suddenly gave an explosive giggled, causing Tony to giggle too…

Would things now improve?

…only time would tell and Tony would give all the time he could from this moment in time…


	7. Chapter 7

****A/N – Hey everyone, hope you are all well.** **I promise I'll not be so mean…for now. It'll be a bit of family time for Charlotte and Tony with a few Avengers thrown in for good measure! The start or a new school and Tony trying to not be the ass he was previously. We will however, end this chapter on a bit of a cliff hanger I think, keep us all on our toes…! Stay safe everyone and I love and appreciate all of your likes and reviews.**

Chapter 7 – **Family ups and downs…**

'Oh, oh! Help! It's on fire! HELP!'

It was Steve who came to the rescue of Charlotte who HAD been attempting to make pancakes for breakfast and it had all gone disastrously wrong. Grabbing up the kitchen extinguisher off its wall bracket, he aimed the nozzle expertly at the cooker and the flames were quickly dealt with as the rest of the team came running seeing as the fire alarm had gone off. Friday quickly stopped the alarm once the flames were out and Steve made sure the cooker was turned off.

Tony came racing in after the others…

'What the hell is going on?...'….he then spotted Charlotte in tears, Bruce was holding her hand under the cold water of the tap as she had apparently burned herself.

'I wanted to make you breakfast…but…but…I couldn't work the cooker right and it…'…

He tried to stop himself visibly sighing as he knew that would make things worse, instead he walked across to the sink were Bruce was examining Charlotte's hand.

'Alright kiddo, it's all over now'….hugging his distressed daughter tightly as she had her hand under the cold water then he shook his head. Good job someone had been about to prevent a catastrophe. Steve was now dealing with the remains of the pancakes, basically, the whole pan went straight into the garbage and wafting his hand about to get rid of the burnt smell.

'Next time you want to cook, just ask someone to help, alright? Then once you've had a bit of practice you can try again on your own, deal?' he smiled down at her.

Charlotte wiped her eyes with her free hand and nodded.

'Let's go down to the med bay, I've got some spray to sort your hand…'…Bruce said, looking up at Tony.

Tony nodded…

'Alright, we'll get sorted up here…'…

 **oOo**

It wasn't only things at home Charlotte was struggling with. She was now enrolled at a local private school, very exclusive and commanded huge fees but it was better than having to be away at boarding school. However, when she did the entrance tests to find out whereabouts she was regarding her learning, her math was way down, she got a 'D' that surprised her new teachers, considering who her father was. A 'C' was scraped at English with her other subjects being around the same level. Every private school had hoped to 'bag' the Stark kid once Tony's PA had started asking for details, he was incredibly rich after all, as well as being a genius. Was this kid really his…?

'Is your dad really Iron Man?' her new school friends had asked and Charlotte quickly realised that friendship here depended on who your parents were. There were kids of famous actors, politicians and just really rich people. Surprisingly, Charlotte stuck out like a sore thumb. After being in her father's shadow for so long, she had learned to avoid being noticed long ago, staying inconspicuous was the best way, but that also meant she was quite isolated and unnoticed. The other kids liked to push themselves forwards, they revelled in their parents successes and rode on the back of their celebrity status. But Tony was the most famous of all…

As the beginning of winter approached, the school show was well under way with regards to rehearsals and every kid in the school was involved in some way, whether it be performing, a musician or an artist, helping create the scenery. The teachers had no clue where Charlotte could contribute so in the end they decided she would be best placed helping to serve the refreshments during the interval.

Tony now got ALL the school mail delivered straight to him to avoid missing anything of importance and when the Christmas show programme came through, he scanned the cast list and back stage crew list for Charlotte's name. He couldn't see it, until he turned to the back page and saw her name listed for serving refreshments. What? A Stark, serving coffee and biscuits? Good god, where had he gone wrong…? He kept it to himself though and asked Charlotte about buying tickets.

'…there aren't any left' she had squeaked.

'Are you sure? A sell out already? Wow, that's impressive! The whole team was hoping to go. Maybe I should call just in case…'…

'No, don't. There aren't any left' Charlotte seemed adamant she didn't want him to go. He knew why of course.

'Don't you want me there?' He feigned a hurt look on his face. They were currently sat having dinner together, they did it a lot now, time alone meant time to share and talk. Something sadly lacking in previous years.

'I'm not in it Daddy. I'm just…serving the drinks at the interval'. She looked so ashamed, knew he would be disappointed she was as usual, living up to her limited capabilities. This school was waaaaay out of her league ability-wise, but her father was by far the richest parent there…

'So what? I want you to serve me coffee at the interval. A school show isn't a school show without a decent cup of coffee and a chocolate chip cookie kiddo'…Tony smiled, doing his best to try to boost her confidence.

'Don't be silly, you don't have to come and waste your time. You're too busy to come'…she looked at him from under her long eyelashes, dark eyes wide. She knew what would happen when he came anyway, everyone would want to talk to him, he'd be his usual flamboyant self and she'd be in the shadows like always.

'I'm coming, and that's final. Either you get me some tickets or I'll call into school myself, alright?'

And that was the end of that line of questioning…

Just before the Christmas show, Charlotte had her 12th birthday. In all her years, she had never had a 'proper' birthday party, she had been a guest to a few of course but parties had been way down Tony's priority list but this year he was determined to organise a party for his daughter. He had asked his PA to organise something that Charlotte didn't know about…

It had been a complete and utter disaster from her point of view.

It wasn't because of the fact Charlotte had no real close friends at her new school, it was the fact they all turned up because they wanted to meet the Avengers. As usual, Charlotte was on the side lines as her father held court with parents and kids who wanted to meet Iron Man and the rest of the team. All the kids and parents went home happy, Charlotte kept her feelings hidden and looked at her father with…was it hate?

 _Oh god, I don't want to hate him but I can't help it…_

Tony being Tony thought the party was a roaring success and as he kissed his daughter goodnight at the end of a long and tiring day, he thought he had scored highly on the parent scale. But it was completely the opposite. And Charlotte knew it would only get worse once he went to the Christmas school show. It seemed that things had turned a circle. From desperately wanting her father's attention, she now would be happy with him NOT being around especially at school events!

And it happened of course. Tony attended the school show and embarrassed her abysmally.

'…anyone want a cup of coffee served by my amazing daughter over here? Roll up, roll up, Stark coffee hot out the machine!'

Charlotte could have curled up and died.

 **oOo**

Two days before term ended and the school Christmas holidays began, Charlotte was trying to do homework and getting increasingly more upset. Her dad was out and about somewhere and only Bruce and Peter were in the tower at that point in time. A math problem had her completely stumped, she just couldn't keep it in her head how to do it and it led to many tears.

'Charlotte? What's wrong?' Peter had come through to the kitchen and found her in a mess with her school books.

'I can't do this! I'm fed-up of being the stupid kid of Iron Man and I wish I was dead!'…

The books ended up on the far side of the kitchen as she hurled them across the kitchen, Peter silently retrieved them.

'I can help you, its okay…' Setting the rescued books back onto the countertop, Peter pulled up a stool and sat next to Charlotte, who was crying into her arms.

'Let's have a look….' opening the exercise book he was able to track down in the text book the questions she was meant to be answering.

'Fractions and percentages! What a nightmare! I hate these things…'…he tried to make light of it, to cheer Charlotte up.

'No you don't, you find them easy, I know you do'. Charlotte had now lifted her head up and wiped her eyes.

'I'd still rather be making Lego things than doing this! My friend Ned says…' was as far as he got before the emergency alarm sounded. This meant incoming injured, and as Peter jumped up and ran, Charlotte followed, the homework forgotten…

Bruce had stopped her at the med bay door…

'Best you don't go in there Charlotte…just need to sort your dad out'…

'What? Why! What's happened? I want to see him!'

She was led away by Natasha in the end who tried to explain that Tony had been knocked out of the sky and was at this point badly injured. It took a lot of consoling the young girl who eventually cried herself to sleep. The next morning she was once more at the door of the med bay, not allowed in at all...

Bruce suggested she should go to school to keep her mind off it so…she did. There was no-one else Charlotte had who was close, no grandparents, no aunts or uncles, she just had her dad. And now he was badly hurt, what was she meant to do?

At the end of the day as she waited for the car to pick her up she sat dangling her feet over a low wall next to the driveway of the school when a woman with blonde hair came towards her. Knowing she wasn't meant to talk to strangers Charlotte quickly stood and was hurrying back through the door into the school reception when the woman called out…

'Charlotte? Please don't run away…I'm…I'm your mother!'


	8. Chapter 8

****A/N – Hello folks! Thanks for your continued support in your reviews and favs/follows.** **Tony's an annoying sod, isn't he? Still not getting it right…well, now we have even more issues thrown into the mix. The appearance of Charlotte's mother! Shocker, eh? Thing is, Tony's out of it at the moment so who is going to step up to the plate to ensure Charlotte is okay…? Hmmm…..guess you'll find out soon enough. But don't worry, Tony will bounce back quickly, he always does!**

Chapter 8 – **Is she really my mother?**

'…she said she can come and pick me up so I can stay next weekend when school breaks for the holidays!' Charlotte waved the note under anyone's nose who would listen. With her father still in the med bay, and this woman who had called herself 'Grace Horwell' saying she was her mother…to Charlotte it seemed the most sensible thing to do! She had always wondered about her mom. Tony had been honest and said her mother had handed her over to Tony with a promise to never return. So why was she back now? Charlotte wasn't bothered, here was someone who had said she was wanted! It was like a carrot on a stick, if her dad didn't want her and never really did…would her mother…?

'Woah, slow down Charlotte! You can't just go off with some random woman who claims to be your mother!' Steve had taken the letter off Charlotte, frowning at it.

'Your dad is injured, you'll have to wait until he is feeling up to dealing with this. Until then, I'm saying you can't go off with this woman'…

He stood, arms folded, the typical Captain America pose when laying down the law.

'…you can't tell me what to do!' Charlotte had uncharacteristically exploded at him, causing the other team members to stop and look at what the noise was.

'Oh yes I can. I'm the leader of the Avengers and you're the kid of one of the team. That says you're part of the team and seeing as I'm in charge, you have to follow the rules like all the rest. Understood?'…

The usual tears followed as Charlotte ran off to her room and Steve spoke to the rest of the team.

'She's likely to ignore everything I've said so keep an eye on her everyone. Natasha, can you do a trace on this woman? Find out if she is who she says she is…'…with a nod, Natasha went off to start searching as Steve then instructed Friday to up the security already in place to stop Charlotte wandering out of the tower on her own…

 **oOo**

Tony finally felt human again two days later and although sore from his injuries, was keen to get up and about although Bruce had restricted him to staying in bed. He could have visitors though and Charlotte was one of the first…

For all their problems, she hugged him tightly. She had been worried sick when she had been informed of his injuries and was a little shocked at his bashed face, looking worse now the bruising was coming out.

'It's okay Charlotte, I'm going to be fine! Just a bit battered is all. Now what's been going on while I've been out for the count…?'

'My mom came to school! She said I can go stay with her! I can can't I? That means you don't have to look after me as much anymore!'…

'…what? Your mother? When? Where was she? How did she get to see you? Was anyone there?' Almost leaping out of the bed, Bruce stopped him.

'Calm down Tony. Steve's been dealing with it, he'll explain I'm sure'…Bruce made him lay back down on the bed.

'…I can go see her, can't I?'…she stared at him in hopefulness, Tony at a loss at what to say.

'…before we decide anything I'm going to have to talk to her. Don't look at me like that Charlotte, she passed you over to me when you were born. This person might be some random crazy person, you know we've had our fair share of those in the past!'…

That had to be good enough for Charlotte at this point in time but she wasn't happy about it. There was no way out of the tower so she'd have to abscond from school, that would be the best bet. Her mother had given her the address of where she was staying so she'd sneak off the next day, no one would ever know, especially if she told Luke her driver she was staying behind at an after school club…

 **oOo**

For the third time in a year, Charlotte Stark went against the rules and decided to do her own thing. However, she didn't think about the fact that her driver reported to Tony that Charlotte had informed him she was staying for the afterschool clubs. A little odd though, as it was the last day of school before the Christmas holidays and there weren't any clubs on…

She got the shock of her life then when she snuck out of the school gates and turned right…to see Tony leaning against his car with his arms folded. The usual impeccable suit and sun glasses, he had tidied his beard up but couldn't hide the bruises to his face. They were the least of his worries though, as he had a face like thunder as he came face to face with his seemingly going-off-the-rails daughter.

'..and just where do you think YOU'RE going young lady?' He pushed himself up from the hood and approached her, looking down, the glare emanating from him caused Charlottes knees to knock together…

Clutching the straps of her backpack, she looked up at her father and had no words…

'I..I wanted to…I just…'…

'You were going to see that woman, weren't you? Do you have any idea how irresponsible that is? You don't even know if she's the person she said she is! Where's the address she gave you? Hand it over'…Tony held his hand out and as Charlotte handed over the piece of paper, she was aware of him grabbing the back of her shirt and being frogmarched to the passenger side of the flashy car.

As she started to protest Tony pinched his thumb and forefinger together…indicating she needed to keep her mouth shut.

'Zip it kiddo! You're grounded for the rest of your life! I can't obviously trust you any longer so I'm going to have to get someone to tail you 24 hours a day...'…

The car quickly headed home, rain started to fall as they pulled into the car park of the tower and once again, Charlotte found herself propelled along the floor at a fast rate of knots. Silence in the lift, Tony stood staring at the door, hands folded in front of him and Charlotte just sniffled…

As the lift door opened Tony for the final time that day escorted Charlotte along to her final destination and that was her bedroom.

'You're in here until dinner. I'll come and fetch you when it's ready…'…

Her door closed and Charlotte fell on her bed, in tears. He didn't get it. He never would…

 **oOo**

'…Miss Horwell, Mr Stark would like to inform you that if you wish to continue to try to contact Charlotte out of the proper channels and procedures, he will put an injunction out against you that will jeopardise any further attempts at contact you try to in the future, legal or otherwise'…

'You can go back and tell Mr Stark that I'll see him in court! I know she isn't happy because she told me...'…

'Then that is an issue for child services madam, and I can assure you Mr Stark will ensure you stick directly within the law. I don't need to remind you of his social standing Miss Horwell? He is a man who has many…resources at his disposal. I'm sure you understand what I mean'. Tony's lawyer lent back on the chair in Grace's apartment. It was quite luxurious, an element of money was here that was for sure. But it was incredibly strange that Charlottes mother had appeared now, after all these years…

'Then tell him I'll see him in court. I look forward to it'…

 **oOo**

'Charlotte? Dinner time…' her bedroom door opened and as Tony stepped in, he noticed she was sat at her desk, on her computer. Tony however, had had the foresight to block her internet connection, to prevent further communication with her supposed mother…so she was just playing games.

They didn't eat with the team that night, once again they ate in Tony's office by the window and neither said anything for a long while but finally Tony spoke…

'…your mother gave you up and told me she didn't want you. I know we haven't always seen eye to eye Charlotte but if you went…'…he left the sentence open-ended. Charlotte just responded by pushing herself away from the table and marching off.

'Charlotte…CHARLOTTE!' his calls fell on deaf ears it seemed and he just let his forehead connect with the table…

'Damn kids!'

Walking back through to the main living area, the rest of the team were lounging around after eating and Steve walked over to Tony who was grabbing himself a beer out of the fridge.

'…how did it go?'

'She's now not talking to me. I mean, what? I've done everything for that girl and she's still not happy?'…

'Have you tried?'

'Tried what, to talk? Of course I've tried to talk. Who is the best talker in this place, me! I can talk my way out of anything, so it stands to reason I should be able to talk to my kid!'

Steve lent against the counter top.

'…but this is Charlotte we are talking about here Tony. She's not an Avenger, an enemy, a business acquaintance, she's your daughter who needs her father. And you two are so unalike it's scary. Why don't you go away somewhere over the holidays? Somewhere quiet, where you don't have the distraction of us…all this….the tower'….Steve waved a general hand around the room.

'Are you getting all moral on me again Cap? I've told you before about sticking your beak into bringing up my daughter!'….the bottle of beer was set down a little too forcefully as Tony turned to face Steve…

'She's not just your kid though, is she? You forget we've been around a few years and have been here while she's growing up. I'm no expert but I can see one day you two will grow so far apart you won't be able to get back what you had'…Steve left it at that and headed off to his own room.

Tony found himself in Charlotte's room just before midnight. Sitting on her small couch he stared at the sleeping girl wondering where he was going wrong. He had changed her school in hope it would improve things between them but whereas before she had been desperate for his attention, she now wanted to keep him at arm's length. He couldn't quite work out what had changed. The school show for example, he had supported her doing that even though she hadn't had a part. The party he had thrown for her birthday, all the kids came and…

Ah…

The penny dropped.

Steve's words ringing in his head.

 _You two are so unalike it's scary…_

Charlotte muttered in her sleep and rolled over, Tony quietly stood and sat on her edge of her bed, ran his fingers through her long hair…

'It'll all work out okay in the end, I promise you'…he whispered, before he stood and quickly left before he woke her up.

 **oOo**

'…I can't change her school again. That'll do more damage, this school is the best in the city!' Tony had sought out Bruce. Although it was late Bruce, like Tony, was often up working late into the night on some project or other.

'Then next time a show or something is on, don't make it such a big deal. Everyone knows Tony Stark, but they don't know Charlotte. Just…blend into the background for once. You asked me what I think, that's what I think. Charlotte isn't like you, she's quiet, doesn't like fuss' Bruce pushed up the goggles he had been wearing to look at Tony who was now on his fifth beer of the night.

'Me, blend into the background? Do you have any clue how hard that is? Not to talk to people?' Tony looked incredulous.

'Yeah, blend in Tony, don't talk! You should try it, works well for me!' Bruce went back to his work and left Tony to his thoughts.

…so the next morning, the Saturday before Christmas, Tony woke Charlotte early.

'Pack a case kiddo! We are going on vacation!'

It never surprised her how he changed moods, one minute he was ranting at her, now he was taking her on holiday?

She sleepily went out into the kitchen where her father was the only one there, starting to make breakfast.

'Vacation? Where? It's almost Christmas day…' she squeaked, looking towards the huge tree that she had helped decorate the previous week.

'Yep. Just for a few days. We'll be back for the big day'…

He set her a plate down with pancakes with a flourish and a big smile.

'…where to?' Charlotte carefully pulled herself onto a stool at the bar, picking up the maple syrup and pouring in on her breakfast.

'You choose'….

Charlotte stared at him.

'….London'.

'London it is then' He sat opposite her and dug his fork into his own pancakes.

'Really? I want to go to the tower!'….a smile brightened up her face.

 _Good going Tony, now don't muck this up again…_


	9. Chapter 9

****A/N – Thanks for the millionth time for your reviews and support! Never expected my story to be as popular as it had been and it gives me the push to keep on going! Tony is a pain, isn't he? Thinks he's getting it right then it all goes to hell…and poor Charlotte desperately latching onto anyone seemingly showing an interest in her. It'll all get worse before it gets better! For MOST of this chapter however, it's reasonable sailing. But you know rough seas are once again just ahead…teeheehee!**

 **Chapter 9** – Calm before the storm

The jet landed at the Biggin Hill airstrip in London the very next morning and Charlotte almost blasted out of the door before being stopped by Tony, who smiled at her enthusiasm.

'Calm down kiddo, we have to do all the passport shizzle before they let us loose, and there should be a car…ahh, there it is…'…

With her hands pressed against the window (her first time to the UK) Charlotte was mesmerised by everything she saw as the sleek car transported them towards the city. A suite was booked at the Savoy hotel, right slap bang in the middle of everything so they could walk to most places and catch the underground to the others.

'Hmm, we've been booked in for three shows, I'll let you see later…and we can do the tower and Tower Bridge and all that stuff round there tomorrow. It's freezing but I reckon we should take a boat trip, what do you say Shortie?' Tony looked up at his excited daughter looking at all the Christmas lights as it was getting dark.

'Can we go see Buckingham Palace? And the dungeons and….'…she gabbled…

'Woah, we've only got four days but I promise we'll get as much in as we can. If we don't we come back in the spring' he shrugged and smiled, moving across to where Charlotte was gawping out the window. Since he had mentioned the trip, Charlotte had said nothing more about her mother, he hoped to keep her distracted enough for the team to have time to dig a bit deeper. Grace Horwell 'apparently' was who she said she was and Tony thought he recognised her, but his lawyers doing all the legal thing was meant to slow her down. There was 'something' wrong, and he meant to find out before more harm was done to Charlotte…

The suite in the hotel was perfect. Not too lavish but plenty of room and pulling her coat on, Charlotte went out onto the balcony.

'Steady on kiddo! Don't give me heart failure! No coming out here unless I'm with you, alright? How about we unpack then head out for something to eat?' Although it was much later over here than in New York, the flight had worn them both out. Tomorrow they'd get an early start on their exploring…

 **oOo**

They did the palace, the London Eye, the Tower, the dungeons, museums galore. They wandered around Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus, ate lunch in China Town and that first night, went to watch the first of the three shows he had booked them in for. Tony being Tony, of course booked a 'box' for them to sit in. No sitting in a packed audience, they had lots of room around them although Charlotte kept freaking him out by leaning forward over the edge before the curtain went up, and it helped having that bit of privacy because although he was 'trying' to avoid being recognised, it was difficult. He had even had to tell the hotel reception to stop putting calls through (how DID people find out he had arrived in London, they only arrived the previous day!) people asking for interviews and god knows what else. All he wanted, was a short holiday with his kid, whom he knew he had treated abysmally in the past…

It was about 2 am when he thought he heard yelling. He was in between that deep sleep and still being aware of his surroundings. He absent-mindedly pushed one of his pyjama pant legs back down with his other foot, yawning. Damn things always ended up around his knees. At first, the usual confusion of where the hell was he, before his brain finally caught up with the rest of his body as he staggered out of bed. The lush bedding caught around his legs though, and as Tony crashed to the floor, the screaming and yelling intensified. He recognised the fact it was Charlotte making the noise.

Always ready for instant use, he pulled the 'mini-gauntlet' over his hand that was linked to his adapted watch, thinking someone must be in the hotel suite with them. He wouldn't use the whole Iron Man suit, but this would pack a punch as he investigated what the hell was going on and his heart rate shot up in panic. Crashing through his bedroom door (it bounced back off the wall from the force…) Tony practically kicked in the door to Charlotte's room, hand palm up, ready to blast anything that was attacking his kid…

There was no-one in there apart from Charlotte, who was cowering in the corner. Obviously having a nightmare…relieved, Tony released the gauntlet back into the watch and bent down to his highly distressed daughter, shivering in her pink pyjamas.

'It's alright, I'm here…' Wrapping his arms around her, he noted she was incredibly light. Yes she was small but, he worried suddenly, wasn't she eating right? Had been neglecting that too…? Oh god!

He sat on the edge of the bed, arms wrapped around her, trying to talk her awake. The yelling (that he couldn't work out what it was she was saying) eventually began to quieten, her sobs slowed and finally she was silent once more, obviously comforted by the fact he was there. On trying to put her back into her bed, she tightened her grip around his neck, whimpering about not wanting him to go….so the rest of the night was spent in his bed where she hung on like a limpet. Tony couldn't remember the last time she used to come running to his room when she was tiny, then would wake up early, bouncing on the bed, demanding breakfast.

Tony woke early, before Charlotte did who was now hugging one of his pillows. It was about 7 am, so he decided to call up room service for breakfast rather than going down to the restaurant. It was then he noticed the test message from Bruce, asking him to contact him as soon as he could. Damn it, always something…

'Bruce? Tony. What's the big issue I can't be away for a few days without the shit hitting the fan?'

'Sorry Tony but everyone else thought I'd better tell you. I DID say we should maybe wait till you got back but I was over-ruled and…'…

'Spit it out you green goblin! It's early and I've a packed day doing the touristy thing!' Tony ran a hand over his unkempt beard, catching a glimpse of his reflection in a mirror. God, he looked like shit…being a 'proper parent' was hard work.

'Grace Horwell's DNA. It's not what it should be. I mean, there's DNA and DNA. But I wasn't convinced so I did a few more tests and...'…

'What the hell are you talking about? What about her DNA?'…Tony say heavily on the chair, it groaned in protest.

'It was altered'.

A long pause.

'…so that means….?'…Tony couldn't keep down the happiness that was growing inside him.

'It was altered to look like she was Charlotte's mother. She's not who she said she was'.

'YES! Ha ha! I knew it! Got her! So WHO is she?'

'That's the thing. This imposter, whoever she is…isn't listed anywhere else. Steve and Natasha went round to confront her and bring her in but she must have gotten wind of it. She had gone. Look, it might be safer for you both to come back early…'

'No. Niet. Nien. Non. Not a chance. I'm having the first positive parent-child experience in god knows how long Bruce. Charlotte's enjoying herself, we'll be fine and we'll see you Thursday, not a moment before'…

 _Famous last words Tony…_

 **oOo**

'..So do you want to tell me what your nightmare was about last night? You gave me quite the fright Shortie, I thought we had an intruder…' Tony asked Charlotte as he poured her up a glass of orange juice. Charlotte was munching eggs and bacon but then slowed down at the mention of the nightmare.

'…can't remember' was all she said before she started eating again.

'Can't remember or don't want to tell me?' He looked at her quizzically.

Charlotte replied with a shrug so he decided to leave it for now.

Once again, they were out and about, shopping in Oxford Street then later Covent Garden, Tony hadn't seen his daughter as cheerful as this in ages. They were having dinner before going to watch 'Wicked' later that evening when Charlotte's phone pinged. She briefly glanced at it (they had said no phones anymore at meal times) and Tony noticed the surprised look on his daughters face.

'What is it? Pass it over' Tony held his hand out to take her phone and his whole face changed when he read it.

'Mom? You have this number listed as mom? When did you get her number? Why didn't you tell me you gave her yours?' He mentally kicked himself, how could he have forgotten to check her phone?

Pressing the button he reopened the message, Charlotte now staring at him, silent.

 _It's almost time. I promised you a new life. Love Mom._

A million emotions ran through Tony. He wanted to yell and scream at Charlotte, tell her what he had found out but something prevented it. Something held him back, should they run for the jet now and head back home to be safe…? No, that was a knee-jerk reaction. But it was a decision he would learn to regret…

Instead, he just turned off the phone, and put it into his pocket then continued eating.

'We'll talk about this when we are home, I don't want this vacation ruined'. Tony managed to drag a smile out for Charlotte's sake, who looked slightly appeased but you could cut the tension with a knife, her endless chatter had been stemmed it seemed.

 **oOo**

It was at the theatre that evening when the vacation came to an abrupt end. Sat eating snacks, Charlotte was much happier since the issue with the phone over dinner but Tony couldn't concentrate, a million thoughts going through his head. Who was this woman, who was she working with and what the hell was she trying to prove? As soon as they got home, he'd make it his own personal mission to find out. Looking at Charlotte, her long dark hair tied back in a pony-tail high on her head, he pondered over a few things. Maybe he should find her real mother. Would that make her happy? He didn't know…he didn't know the best course of action and that worried him…

His phone was vibrating with the emergency code in his top pocket, right in the middle of the first act. Silently cursing he stepped out of the box after telling Charlotte he'd be right back and went to answer it.

That's all he remembered.

Everything went black, just aware of an incredible power surge knocking him off his feet…then nothing.

Finally, when he opened his eyes he saw concerned staff members of the theatre.

'Are you alright Sir? We've called an ambulance. Just stay still Mr Stark…'

Staying still was the last thing he was going to do. Heaving himself up he pushed through the curtains to the box, it was the interval so the house lights were on. The seats where they had been sitting were empty…

'Where is she? Where's my daughter?'


	10. Chapter 10

****A/N – I feel I must apologise to some of you for causing you such personal heartache over the roller coaster ride my story is following! It is not my intention to cause emotional trauma (~crosses fingers behind back~) and I do hope you are feeling better soon…** **(…until the next chapter!)**

 **Chapter 10** – I'm so confused…

'…when she wakes, will she know about the implant?'…Grace looked towards the sleeping Charlotte who was flaked out in a hospital bed. To the untrained eye, the room would look like a regular hospital room, but that was far from the truth….

'No. She won't know it's there. It'll take a few minutes to calibrate the chip via the computer but once it's operational, it'll just be a matter of time before the live feed comes through'…

The man Grace had just spoken to gave a wry smile. He had been waiting for a chance like this for a long, long time. To be able to see inside the Avengers facility via the eyes of the kid of Tony Stark would give his Hydra cell all the information they needed. Weak points, possible entry points, even the chance to see blue prints in Starks laboratory if Charlotte went in there. It was a chance he was willing to take. It could take some time…but they had all the time in the world…

'…and what about anyone else, will that A.I. system know it's there?' Grace sat down elegantly, crossed her legs and lent back slightly.

'No. That's the beauty of it. It has a little jamming chip, the frequency of it is one no-one would ever suspect so we've covered all bases. The thing now, is to get that kid back to her dearest papa, and let the computer do the rest'…

'You know he's going to be hot on my heels, don't you?' Grace gave a smile, Tony Stark didn't worry her, not when she was going to have the plastic surgery undone the minute Charlotte was released back into the streets of London.

'Stark is so set on finding his kid, he won't be worrying about you. Yes, you sent that test message to the kids phone, but by tomorrow, Grace Horwell will no longer exist. You'll be back under the knife and become Susan Greeves once again'…

 **oOo**

Austin Donovan was a tall man, middle aged, with blonde hair beginning to show flecks of grey, especially obvious when under direct light. His history was as dubious as the people he worked with now, dishonourably discharged from the US Navy many years ago, he had soon fallen in with a bunch of small-time crooks who had eventually led him to the leader of a wider underground organisation. Austin had been tested in many ways, to check his loyalty and integrity to 'The Cause'. The leader had been impressed and seven years ago he had been given the lead position in a small Hydra cell based in New York. They weren't there to be spotted, or to be a thorn in the Avengers side, until now. Many cells were often quiet until given the nod by the powers that be, and now the powers that be wanted to strip apart the Avengers from the inside so Austin had set up this little rouse. If it worked, it would be a big bonus for him, as well as a promotion inside the underground organisation itself…

To everyone who knew him on the 'outside', Mr Donovan was a successful businessman whose company dealt in technology. Nothing on the scale of Starks of course, mainly printers and digital cameras. He bought from abroad and shipped them out across the states. The market was good and he did well. His company was on the radar in the city, it needed to be to allow him to mingle with the big names in the techno world, and he had even met Tony a few times at various conferences and meetings. To snag the secrets of the Avengers would be the pinnacle of his underworld career, and he didn't intend on letting that chance slip away…

 **oOo**

'…she is going to be fine Mr Stark. Please, you need to calm down'…

The police inspector who had taken the case once Tony's attack had been reported followed by Charlotte going missing was stood outside the hospital room of where Charlotte had been taken after she had been found wandering the streets of London. She had been drugged up to the eyeballs and found by an elderly couple walking their dog, Tony's daughter was found over eight miles from the theatre they had been in. It was also 12 hours after the event had happened and Tony had gone nuclear. The news had reported the apparent kidnapping, the team were about to leave New York and join in the search if Charlotte was missing another 12 hours.

Now, as Tony was about to burst into the hospital room, face red and anger on a level scale of 100, the inspector laid his hand on Tony's shoulder.

'The doctor said she's highly confused, she doesn't know what went on and…she's been given a cocktail of drugs they are analysing now. You don't want to upset her further by blasting through the door Mr Stark'…

Tony stopped, trying to get a hold of his breathing. These last 12 hours had been stuff of nightmares. No clues, no ideas as to who, or why…someone kidnapped his kid. The police officer was right, Charlotte would only get scared if he burst in demanding answers.

'Sure, you're right, I'm calm….I'm calm!'….another deep breath, then he opened the door quietly and stepped inside the room.

The curtains were closed, the light dim, although it was late afternoon, and a monitor and drip were hooked up next to Charlotte's bed. Her eyes were closed and she looked pale, her long dark hair splayed out on the pillow.

Tony gulped, then took a deep breath before sitting down on the chair next to her bed…

'Hey Shortie, how are you feeling?' he was sure his voice was wobbling, although he was doing his best to keep a lid on his emotions.

Charlotte's eyes shot open, firstly in fear, then the tears started when she saw who it was…

'Daddy?' she wailed….

'Ssssh…I'm here now, it's okay….'…he stood up from the chair, repositioned himself on the edge of her bed and hugged her tightly.

'I told..I told her I couldn't go, but she dragged me out…I..don't remember anything after that!' Her tears increased as her crying got louder, hanging onto him for dear life.

'Shush, we don't need to talk about it now. When you're feeling up to it kiddo'. He kissed the top of his head, vowing a slow and painful death on the supposed Grace Horwell. Ripping her limbs off one by one by Iron Man sounded like a suitable payback at this point in time.

The drug report came back, Charlotte had been heavily sedated and she was also quite battered and bruised (she had put up a good fight once she had seen her father sparked out on the floor) so an examination didn't reveal a tiny surgery scar on her head, as she had several small cuts on her skin already. The police put it down to a botched kidnap attempt, probably someone trying their luck then panicking. Tony didn't enlighten them about 'Grace Horwell', he needed to get his daughter back home to the safety of the tower and do his own investigating from there.

 **oOo**

They left the hospital in the middle of the night and were driven off to the airport as quickly as possible to avoid a press nightmare seeing as the paparazzi were now encamped outside the hospital, hoping for some juicy gossip from the Stark family. The car cut through the London streets and it didn't take long before the private jet was heading back over the Atlantic towards home. Tony slept most of the way with Charlotte bundled up in his arms, she was still wiped out from the drugs in her system and as the plane landed, they had to be woken as the door to the jet was opened. It was Steve who came in, to see Tony sleepily try to stand with Charlotte still out of it in her pyjamas and wrapped in the blanket. Steve stepped forward to take the sleeping kid from Tony but as Tony drew her back protectively Steve spoke…

'Tony, you look wiped out. You don't want to drop her on the tarmac, do you? It's me, Steve, I'll take Charlotte into the limo, its right outside'…

'Yeah, sure thing Cap, but if YOU drop her, I'll rip your head off'.

A slight smile, Steve carefully took the sleeping girl out of Tony's arms and within minutes they were speeding back to the tower, and safety…

Lots of coffee for Tony later, he sat on the couch in the main living area with Peter next to him, Charlotte was in bed.

'I told you one of us should have come with you Mr Stark. I could have stopped them snatching Charlotte' Peter pulled a face. They had all been affected by what had happened.

'I know kiddo but you had stuff to do here' Tony ruffled the teenagers hair affectionately as he often did, he had missed Peter, missed his easy conversations and company. He was so easy to be around…

'Maybe we should have a spider bite Charlotte too! Then she can defend herself!' Peter stuck a chocolate chip cookie into his mouth and turned back to the TV.

'Perish the thought!' replied Tony.

'…now that's not a bad idea' A voice from the kitchen, Clint, who was making himself a coffee. It was now two days before Christmas and he was heading back to his family later that day.

Tony couldn't believe what he just heard and swivelled his head around.

'Are you losing your marbles, Robin Hood? What shall we do, throw my kid in with a bunch of mutant spiders and hope she comes out as Spidergirl?'…

Clint huffed…

'Geez Stark, your brain must be inactive due to lack of sleep. What I meant was, self-defence lessons.'

'Of course' piped up Natasha.

'I know she's small but I started young…'

'Hey, I'm not turning my daughter in an assassin thank you! She's just fine the way she is!'

'…so let her keep getting kidnapped then' Natasha shrugged and went back to reading her tablet, feet up on the coffee table.

'…I'll think about it' he grunted, somehow…he never saw his daughter kicking the asses of the bad guys but now, was it really needed, so she had the chance to escape or defend herself?

'…daddy?' a squeak from the doorway, Charlotte was stood there, ruffled pyjamas, the same blanket…looking worried…

'Hey Shortie! Come and sit with us!'…Tony was relieved she was now awake, the drugs she had been given had really done a number on her.

Peter scooted over and Charlotte climbed between them, Tony wrapped the blanket around her and she lay her head on his legs. Within minutes, she was asleep once again. Absentmindedly, Tony ran his hand over her hair, watching the Disney movie Peter was watching but paying it no attention…his mind was in turmoil. Where did he go from here…?

 **oOo**

'…when will you bring the chip online Mr Donovan?'…the computer operator was busy punching in commands as his boss leaned in behind him to stare at the screen.

'We'll give it a few days. Let the dust settle. The Stark kid will be too sleepy for a while to go off exploring the tower so there's no point in tuning in until she's compos mentis'…Austin grinned evilly, he had no morals when it came to using a 12 year old kid to get the information he so desired.

'Just wait and see, the secrets of the Avengers are just about within our grasp, and they'll have no clue as to just where the leak is…'…


	11. Chapter 11

****A/N – Hey all! Hope everything in your world is going well and you are getting to enjoy the summer if possible. I'm going to be doing just a small time jump at some point, not sure when it'll happen but it's just a pre-warning so you don't get too much of a shock! Take care everyone and thanks for your continued support, it means a lot.**

Chapter 11 – **Investigations**

'..so if we move this here, that looks kinda cool, don't you think? Mind you, it's your project, I'm just stoked you asked me to help. There, that looks good. What about if you paint this green? It'll look like grass then and then we can add the robot spiders to climb the tree and if you then put that cardboard hill we made just here…it looks UBER-awesome!'

Peter Parker never shut up. Charlotte was discovering that now they were trying to spend more time with each other over the Christmas holidays in an effort to move forward away from the bad feelings Charlotte had recently harboured. He had agreed to help her with a science project, of which she had no clue what to do it on. Well, she had decided to grow a mini-garden, that was as far as her imagination had taken her but of course a garden takes time to grow, hence Peter suggesting an 'Arachnid Forest', meaning they had to make some tiny robotic spiders to represent different species.

'…how do we make the robot spiders?' she asked in her squeaky voice, looking at the pile of materials on the desk.

'Easy, look, find the bit that looks like this, that's it. Then pick up THAT part, then these two go together like this. You need that tiny screw driver there….yep, that's it!'…

Tony was also in the lab, working on his suit, he was listening in and trying not to grin. Why he hadn't done this years ago he didn't know. Charlotte might not be a genius like Peter but she was willing to listen to what he said in order to get her project off the ground. Sure, she might have a bit of an advantage at school because of his lab and the help she could get but things like that didn't worry Tony.

After a couple of hours he went across to the two workers, both with the magnifying headsets on, allowing them to see the tiny parts and clamped his hands on each of their shoulders.

'…and how are my little lab rats doing?...' Tony lent forward between them both to check their progress.

'Good daddy! Look! I made a robot spider!' Charlotte placed the tiny thing down and it shot off up the tree as programmed.

He kissed her cheek and hugged her, overjoyed she seemed to be happier after everything that had gone on. She had no clue however, that Tony had started a search for the people who had taken her in London.

'Why don't my little chip off the iron girder and spiderling go and grab some snacks? Must be a movie on too…'…

'Are you coming too?' Charlotte looked up expectantly. Usually he would say no but seeing as he was turning over a new leaf, he nodded and smiled.

'Yeah, but if I get there first I get choice of movie…'

This resulted in a stampede to the main living area that involved trying to trip each other up, and other such dirty tricks. Charlotte couldn't remember the last time she had had such fun when she sat with a tube of Pringles, fighting over the TV remote to decide what they were going to watch….

 **oOo**

'..I didn't expect to be watching hours of footage of eating food, watching Disney movies and making goddamn robotic spiders!' Donovan snapped at the computer operator who was still trying to calibrate the chip implanted in Charlottes head.

'…I've altered it now Sir, it will only record footage when she is in Stark's laboratory. I've picked up the GPS signal of exactly where in the tower that is so from now on we should only be getting that information through'…

'Good. Else you'll be explaining to Mr Kirton just why he's having to enjoy 'Frozen' for the hundredth time!'

Austin strode off. The boss had suddenly decided to push the schedule up, and he wanted answers fast. The problem was, they had to be careful with the technology in the Stark kids head, and any deviation in changes of the operating frequency could be detected if they weren't careful. This was their chance to get valuable information to allow them to attack the Avengers with luck on their side, Austin didn't want to blow it and Mr Kirton would take it out of his hide if he did…

'..thing is boss, if we push things too much, the chip could cause the kid to have headaches which will lead to investigations…'…the villains sidekick trailed off with what he was saying, Mr Donovan had disappeared from sight. He sighed, he didn't want getting blown away by the Avengers any more than anyone else did, but the pay check was good so like all good goons, he got on with his job.

 **oOo**

For Charlotte's sake, Tony wasn't involving her on the search side of who the hell it was that kidnapped her, of course 'Grace Horwell' seemed to have disappeared off the face of the Earth. He did find out however, that her actual mother, the REAL Grace Horwell, had died about four years previously. Tony was undecided about telling Charlotte, Sam was of the mind set to tell her when they had tracked down those responsible in the first place, to sort of draw a line under it. Tony decided that that's what he would do, and hoped that Charlotte would understand his reasons for keeping such news from her at this time. Well, he could only hope, couldn't he…?

The Christmas holidays came to an end and as both Charlotte and Peter both returned to their respective schools, Austin Donovan was getting itchy feet, especially as HIS boss was getting heavy. Sure, the chip not only could see through Charlotte's eyes, it could also influence her thinking, although this technology was still very basic, it could prove very risky.

'Mind control? If it goes wrong, the Avengers will be on our doorstep!' Donovan had ranted at his minions, but orders were orders, and the Chief Goon who controlled the chip in the Stark kids head, started to turn up the frequency in an attempt to try to get the information the Hydra cell so desperately desired.

It was one week into the new semester then when Charlotte was sat in math class (and as usual struggling with the questions) when an image flashed into her mind. Just an image of her dad's Iron Man suit alongside the blueprints of the suit. It meant nothing to her at that point but the image kept coming back, over and over, and over again. It gave her an urge to go and see them, but being at school that was a bit difficult so she would look later when she was home. But even then, her dad was working in his lab with Peter so couldn't just go in to look at stuff. So she tried to supress it, but the more she tried, the more the image flashed in her mind. The inevitable happened of course, she ended up with a blinding headache that she just ignored. In the past if she was ill, she had never really told her dad as he hadn't seem that interested, it was only when she got really bad and he had actually noticed…that something was done about it. Even though things were going well now, Charlotte was still unsure about many aspects of their relationship, there were things she felt she couldn't tell him in case things reverted back to what they had been. It would take a lot for the 12 year old girl to totally feel comfortable around her father, a sad…but true reality due to her upbringing…

Her headache raged for a few days, the same damn image flashing up. What did it mean? Was she going mad? It began to scare her as well…as she was beginning to feel sick with it. If she asked Bruce, he'd tell her dad, they wouldn't see her at the usual doctor they went to without a parent, so she was sort of stuck. Well, she'd just have to put up with it she supposed. After five days of this it was actually Bruce who noticed the change in Tony's daughter. Her face was pale and she was quieter than usual, which meant she was saying nothing at all.

'Are you alright Charlotte?' he asked one Sunday morning.

'Yes thank you Dr Banner' came her usual squeaky reply.

'Now I know you're not right, calling me Dr Banner! You look a bit pale, are you feeling a bit off it?' He walked across and laid his hand across her forehead.

'I'm okay'…she looked away.

'I don't think you are. Where's your dad? You should come down the med bay, I'll give you a check over' He said, concerned.

'NO! No, I mean…please don't tell him!' She asked, suddenly getting anxious.

'Why on earth not? He'll want to know if you're ill'…

'…because…because if…if I'm ill he'll have to…look after me more'…Charlotte looked away.

'What do you mean?' Bruce frowned, folding his arms.

'I don't want things to go back to what they were. If I'm ill it might make him…annoyed that he has to look after me again'…her voice broke and she covered her face with her hands. Bruce raised an eyebrow then sat next to her.

'Charlotte, you being ill won't change things. How long has this been going on?'

'…about a week. I got a headache and it won't go away. I keep thinking about weird things as will. It's like…a picture in my head' she turned back to Bruce, worry in her eyes that looked slightly bloodshot from where he was sitting.

'What sort of picture?' Bruce leaning back now, folding his arms.

'…it's a stupid picture, means nothing…'

'I'll be the judge of that, what sort of picture Charlotte?'

'….Iron Man and plans for the suit'

A pause…

'The same picture all the time? No changes?'

Charlotte nodded her head.

'All the time. I keep trying to ignore it but then the pain in my head gets worse' Charlotte widened her eyes, wrapped her arms around herself when her father came in, his usual bold and loud self.

'Hey, hey, hey! It's the jolly green giant and Shortie! What are you two cooking up?' he grinned but that quickly faded when he looked from one face to the other.

Bruce quickly stood.

'Good job you're here Tony. Come on down to the med bay, Charlottes been having headaches, think we better check it out, sooner rather than later'…

'Headaches? Since when? Why didn't you tell me?' Tony turned with his hands on his hips, practically glaring at his daughter who visibly shrunk in her chair.

'..It's not important' she began before Bruce spoke again.

'Let's get going'…

 **oOo**

'…images in her head? What sort of images?' Tony wouldn't let up with the questions, understandably.

'Just give me a minute Tony, I'll explain all in a moment. Right Charlotte, I'm going to be running some tests, might take a little while but I need you to lie on here, alright? I'll just bring this scanning equipment down around you as well, no need to worry'…

He smiled kindly as Charlotte did as he said then he led Tony to just outside the door.

'She says she keeps getting images in her head, the same ones, your suit and…the plans for your suit. That's a bit odd, don't you think?' Bruce said, voice low.

'Odd? Crazy if you ask me. So why's it happening, did something happen? Did the drugs she get given do something?'

'Well now here's the thing. She was drugged with Enflurane, it's not used these days but can still be found on the black market. Used to be used as a general anaesthetic. Made sense for kidnappers to use it as a drug to knock someone out but…if they used it for actual surgery, we need to find out what they did'…

Tony's response was to thump a hole into the wall next to him. He lent against the wall, closed his eyes…controlling his anger. So not only had they snatched his kid, they had performed surgery on her as well? Someone was going to pay very dearly for this…

'We'll solve it Tony. And if there is something in there, we can get it out, it might give us a clue as to who is behind all this'…Bruce placed his hand on Tony's shoulder, smiled, then walked back into the med bay…

Bruce went to sit by the computer that was linked to the scanner, and as the scanner dove deeper inside Charlottes head, every scan possible was being run. About 25 minutes later he called Tony over who had been sat talking with Charlotte, trying to keep her spirits up.

'There it is, an implant. Tiny, but if you see…it's got extensions that are feeding into her brain'

'…son of a…..so how do we get it out, like…yesterday?'….

'Going to have to operate I'm afraid. Don't worry, we have a mutual friend remember who can help. Stephen Strange….?'

 **oOo**

The mystery as to who had kidnapped Charlotte was growing deeper. As Tony paced outside the med bay doors, he kept churning things over and over in his mind. Who had done this and how was he going to find them? Once more he questioned being a parent in his position. Peter (whom he viewed as a son since he had lost his aunt and uncle) could take care of himself, most of the time…but it brought home the fact that Charlotte was much more vulnerable. He guessed that Clint and Natasha had a good point, Charlotte needed to be able to defend herself to give herself a chance…

'Tony? You can come in now'…

Almost bursting into the room, Charlotte was lying on the bed, asleep, bandages around her head and a drip attached, breathing steadily. Stephen and Bruce came through from the surgical room after changing.

'Here's your riddle' Dr Strange, whom tony had only met on a handful of occasions, held out his hand as the doctor placed a metal tray in it.

A tiny piece of electronic equipment, with tiny wires protruding from it.

'Over to you now Mr Stark. Let me know when you find out who this belongs to'.

Tony didn't need telling twice. He marched out of the med bay and straight to his lab, asking Friday to get Peter there as soon as he could.

Whoever did this, was going to regret the day they were born…


	12. Chapter 12

****A/N – Hello everyone! Sorry for the slight delay but its scorching here in the UK and seeing as I'm not at work (schools holidays, yippee!) it's making me a tad lazy! Anyhoo, it might seem things are jumping about a bit in time these next two or three (will see how it goes) chapters, but will hopefully be clear why, just to give you a bit of background on the very start of Tony and Charlotte's relationship. I'll start to add a little more each new chapter. The time jump will also occur as well. And the baddies will be free to fight another day so have no fear of that one! Stay safe my little Marvelites!** **XXX**

Chapter 12 – **Reflections**

' _For the last time Mr Stark, the DNA test has been tested three times and each time, the result is the same. Now, if you don't want the child, we can put her up for adoption'_

 _The woman from Social Services was glaring hard enough to melt lead, but Tony was determined to NOT be intimidated by her. She was scary…_

 _Turning to his lawyer on her left, the billionaire playboy dropped the volume of his voice to speak privately._

'… _how are we looking publically on this? I really can't deal with a kid right now…'_

' _I'm afraid the press have gotten wind of this already. If you agree to the adoption, well, you can imagine what response THAT will create. Arms dealer AND abandoning your child? It's going to be a rough road'…_

 _Tony ran his hand down his face, his tiredness now showing due to all this extra grief he had to deal with ever since the baby girl had been delivered to Stark Industries reception. NOW what was he meant to do…?_

' _I guess that seals the deal then. Looks like I got myself a kid…'_

 **oOo**

The investigation on the identity of the person/people responsible for the kidnap of Charlotte drew a blank. Whichever way Tony turned, there didn't seem to be an end to it. He was sure Hydra was behind everything that happened purely because of the technology in the implant and the fact they were able to cover their tracks so well. All he could say to Charlotte was he would keep trying to track them down and once he did, then they would pay for it.

Of course then the million dollar question had been asked.

'…was she really my mother?'

Tony had been tinkering in his lab and Charlotte perched on a stool and watching when the question came out of nowhere.

He had stopped, took his goggles off then looked up over the workshop table at his wide-eyed daughter.

'…I'm afraid she wasn't Shortie. Your real mother died about four years ago. I had hoped to find who had done all this and tell you then'…he took the goggles off and as he moved around towards her, Charlotte jumped up and ran off out of the lab. Running his hands vigorously through his hair Tony followed her out and eventually found her in the gardens of the tower. She was sat on the grass, plucking up blades of grass then throwing them.

Tony silently sat next to her…

'I'm sorry Shortie, I really am. I think maybe…'…

'I don't want to talk about it' came his daughter's rather sharp reply.

Tony turned his head, Charlotte never usually spoke in this tone but of course she had good reason to. In the end he just put his arm around her and as she lay her head against his shoulder, they watched the sun go down in silence.

Tony wouldn't give up his search, one day, he WOULD find who did this, and they would more than pay…

 **oOo**

~Two Years Later~

He wasn't sure just when Charlotte changed from using 'Daddy' to 'Dad' and he wasn't sure at what point she had begun to take an active interest in how she was looking. But what he DID know, was that since Charlotte hit puberty, things had gotten a tad more difficult…

Well, actually, quite a lot more difficult.

For Charlotte, it began the day she hunted out Natasha who was finishing a training session.

'Tasha?' she had squeaked, obviously upset and had been crying.

'Hello Charlotte, what's wrong?' she bent down slowly, placing a hand on her shoulder.

'…can you….I need to…the drug store?' came the wail…

'The drugstore? What for? Oh..OH. Yes, of course sweetheart. Just give me a minute to shower and change'…Natasha gave the girl a quick reassuring hug then yelled at Tony from outside the main living area.

'…just scooting out. Charlotte's coming with me…'

'What? Where are you going? Is it safe?' came the bellow after…

'Do you really think anyone would mess with me Stark?'…

And that had been that. Natasha had dropped the bombshell to Tony late that evening after Charlotte had gone to bed. Tony turned pale and had to lean against the counter top.

'Oh god, why does she have to grow up?'

'Because all kids do Tony. And don't be talking to her about it. The poor kids been a wreck all afternoon. She'll be okay soon'…

'Talk to her about it? I'd rather face the end of the world than that!'

…and after that time ticked on. Seemed that Charlotte had stuck at the grand height of five feet two inches tall with no promise of growing taller and Tony got an earful from their doctor when Charlotte went to get her vaccine jabs.

'…considering she's about 25 pounds below what her weight should be, I'm amazed she's standing up at all Mr Stark'…

Charlotte had just stared at her feet and Tony had unleashed his thoughts on THAT one on the car journey home…

'The doctor is right. All you seem to do these days is pick at your food. It's no different to what we usually have. Well, that ends NOW. No more leaving food on your plate, I'm not having him accuse me of not feeding you! Made me feel about this big!' He indicated the tiny size with his thumb and finger as Charlotte responded….

'I'm on a diet!'

Tony had almost crashed the car at that one.

'Diet? Diet? Are you nuts? No more diets Shortie, I've banned them'

'You can't ban diets!' she yelled back…

'Adult talking here so zip it Shortie, I can and I will, dieting for YOU is a no-no!'

The argument had raged on well until dinner time. The other Avengers listened in surprise.

'Charlotte arguing back? That's new…' Steve commented as Natasha winked at him.

'She's finding her feet Cap, looks like the worm is turning'…

 **oOo**

As Charlotte approached her 14th birthday Tony asked did she want a new unicorn t-shirt, and she had pulled the most horrendous face at him, his jaw dropped.

'What did I say?'

'Unicorns? I don't want unicorns, they are for kids! If you wouldn't mind, I'd like hair straighteners, and I'm going shopping with Izzy on Saturday, can I please have an advance on my allowance Dad?'

Tony wasn't often shocked, but he was that day as Charlotte practically skipped off back towards her bedroom.

She had gotten her advance, and he had also charged his PA to get the best straighteners money could buy ready for her birthday. And as she had said, Charlotte went into the city with her friend Izzy (with a strategically placed 'tail' close behind in case of issues) and on arriving home she was laden with bags.

'Wow, your allowance went a long way' Tony stared at all the bags…

'I also have birthday and Christmas money, I've been saving for years and years. Oh, there's a party next weekend at Izzy's friends place. Can I go then sleep over at Izzy's?'…she asked, digging through the bags.

'Woah, woah, woah! I thought you said you never wanted to stay at people's houses?' Tony's head was reeling at this point…

'Well, this is Izzy, isn't it Dad?' Picking up her bags, Charlotte headed out towards her room, but before that she yelled…

'…Can I decorate my room please? It's too babyish!'…

'Where's Charlotte gone, and what have you done with her?' he ran to the door and bellowed after her, no response…

The physical changes were subtle at first, and then of course came the day Charlotte went all-out to impress a certain Avenger she sort of had a crush on…well, a monstrous one. She was convinced she was in love with him.

A meeting had been called regarding something or other and Thor was also due to attend. He arrived in his usual way of lightening and clouds and thunder and things…and as he strode into the main living area where all team had assembled to grab refreshments before they headed for the conference room, he announced his arrival in his usual booming voice.

'I have arrived, my Midgardian friends…'…

It was at this point Charlotte arrived in the room. Beaming wildly at Thor, who raised an eyebrow, she was then spotted by Tony, who went absolutely nuclear…

'What the HELL are you wearing? Get back to your room and change RIGHT NOW young lady!'

Well, he didn't handle it the best way, but then, when did Tony ever think before he opened his mouth…?

Charlotte opened her mouth to protest but found herself frogmarched to her room when she spun on Tony…

'What's wrong with what I'm wearing? Why did you have to embarrass me in front of him!?'

'Look in the damn mirror and you'll see why!' He grabbed her shoulders and Charlotte found herself spun around to face the large long mirror that was on her bedroom wall.

'A top so skinny it barely covers what it should and a skirt so short you can practically see your ass? And hell knows how you walk in those damn shoes! What the hell possessed you to plaster on so much make-up you look like a damn clown?'…

Of course, the tears arrived and Charlotte threw herself on to her bed. Tony inwardly kicked himself, but only for a moment. Charlotte was his little girl and hell would freeze over before he allowed her to strut about like she was a hooker…

'We'll talk later…' Tony left her room, slamming the door behind him.

The relative peace of the last 18 months or so was shattered.

It was now all-out warfare. Their relationship took a huge nosedive and things were about to get even worse…

oOo

From that moment on, Charlotte was so embarrassed that she flatly refused to be around whenever Thor arrived. He felt a little responsible for that so asked Tony where she was so he could 'have a word'.

'Sure thing Hammerhead, but be prepared to find a brick wall…'…

Knocking on Charlottes door, he opened it quietly even though she had yelled 'GO AWAY!'

'Little Charlotte, I would like to be able to talk with you…'

Oh GOD! Literally! Charlotte stuck her pillow over her head. Wearing more modest clothes now (Tony had blasted through her wardrobe and removed anything that remotely looked suggestive to him, he DID throw a ton of money at her though and ordered her to go replace the clothing, but 'be conservative before you give me any more heart failure!') she had on jeans and a stripy shirt.

'Can't talk, asleep!' came her muffled reply.

Thor, not easily put off by a short Midgardian girl, sat down on the chair near her bed.

'I miss our conversations in the garden, talking about the roses and other flowerbeds. Why won't you come outside now when I'm here?' Of course he knew but felt she needed to address it to move past her embarrassment.

'…why would you waste your time with a kid? You're the God of Thunder and an Avenger, I've just been wasting your time'. She gave a strangled sob, feeling so, so foolish, and her dad was to blame for EVERYTHING.

'I've never heard such self-pitying talk. If I did not want to talk to you, I would not bother. Now please remove the bed coverings so I can talk to you and not a pile of linen'.

After what seemed an age, Charlotte pushed her pillow away and sat up, her face red from tears and embarrassment, hair stuck out all over the place. She stared at Thor…

'I am honoured that you felt the need to dress yourself up for me, but you do not need to do that. I am interested in Charlotte, the person. Clothing is just there to do a job. The person underneath is the important thing. We have not walked in the gardens the last three times I have visited. I miss it. So will you please come with me now? We have a lot to catch up on…'…

Charlotte was torn, how did she reply to that request? How could she ever live it down? Ever since That Incident almost two years ago, she had latched onto Thor whenever he visited. And he was right, that had talked about so many things, she had found she had opened her heart up to him, someone to pour out her troubles. Here was one of the greatest heroes who ever lived, taking time out of his day to talk to her and spend with her. She too, had missed it…

Giving a small smile, she wiped her eyes and accepted Thor's hand when he stood. She looked up to the God of Thunder…

'If we see my dad, will you thump him?'

Thor gave a loud laugh…causing Charlotte to giggle.

'I doubt the Man of Iron would appreciate that, but I could threaten to throw him in the fountain, if that makes you feel better…?'…

 **oOo**

As Charlotte's 14th birthday approached, Tony asked her what she wanted to do. Following the disastrous 12th birthday party fiasco, he had learned pretty quickly to not repeat THAT again. For her 13th, a simple meal out had been her request for Charlotte, her dad and a friend from school. Charlotte had made a few friends, not many…but Izzy seemed okay to Tony so he had happy about that. School still wasn't great, but still Tony refused to move his daughter again.

It was the week before her birthday, a Wednesday, when Clint came barging into the lab. Tony and Bruce were in there tinkering, Peter was away at college so the tower was pretty quiet on the Avenger front at the moment.

'Tony! Turn on the TV!'…

'What? What for?' He looked up, another Avengers crisis no doubt…

'A fire. At Charlotte's school!'


	13. Chapter 13

****A/N – Hey everyone! Hope the time jump wasn't too much of a shocker for you, don't worry, the sweet Charlotte is still there and you'll see a return at some point.** **Also regarding the cliff hanger, yeah…I'm a sod, I know! Hope you continue to enjoy what I'm writing and I apologise for mistakes although I do go back and edit, it doesn't seem to want to show up. Also if you have ideas, send them my way in your reviews and I'll see what I can do! Love you, my little Marvelites!**

Chapter 13 – **Finding inner strength…?**

' _Dadda! Dadda, up, up!' The two year old Charlotte was always attempting to climb Tony's leg whenever he was out of the lab and hanging around the house on the cliffs._

' _Okay, okay! I hear ya Shorty!' Bending down, he plucked the tiny girl up and set her on his hip as he attempted to eat a piece of grilled cheese. It was always an attempt because like all small kids, she wanted what her daddy was eating._

' _Alright, here you go, only a tiny bit mind, don't want to have to dangle you upside down when you're choking!'…_

 _Charlotte munched happily on the piece of grilled cheese as Tony looked over the new list of nannies his PA had sent him. The last one had been a bit flaky, always late for work, excuse after excuse, and he definitely needed someone to help out as he was so damn busy these days…_

' _Right, you need to sit in your chair and I'll cut you up a banana, alright?'…_

 _Grimacing, he managed to wrestle the wriggling kid into the harness on the highchair and took a deep breath, Charlotte was so full of energy…where the hell did she get it from?_

' _Nanna! Nanna!' she bellowed, banging the spoon that was on the high chair table, shrieking so loudly Tony could hardly hear himself think._

 _Kids!_

 _Who invented them?_

 **oOo**

The prestigious school Charlotte had now been enrolled in for the past two years was the best and most expensive in New York and far beyond the city. It wasn't the most suitable place for such a person as she was, but she was hanging on, doing what she could and staying in the background. Even with beginning to grow up, she still remained very quiet and reserved when around lots of people and only had one close friend, and a few kids she spoke to regularly. Her friend Izzy was a complete and utter scatterbrain whose parents were very highly regarded surgeons at the biggest hospital in the state.

The school offered many extra-curricular activities on top of the usual lessons the students had to take and physical education was one of Charlottes favourite due to the fact she could play lots of baseball…she avoided performing arts and drama, but enjoyed art and graphics club.

On the day of the fire the day started as it always did. The weather was fine for a June day and the promise of a warm summer was in the air. Charlotte woke and showered as always, now getting up earlier as she was taking more time on sorting her hair (the expected hair straighteners promised for the birthday next week would be most welcomed) then once she had applied her make-up (…with promises to scrub her face with a pan scrubber if she looked like a 'clown' as Tony would say…) she headed out for breakfast. The place was really busy this morning, seems some sort of mission had taken place overnight and everyone was dashing about grabbing food, and discussing the night's activities. And as usual…Charlotte just sat down and picked up her spoon silently, without any real acknowledgment from anyone, much less her father even though he WAS trying harder but on days like today, it was impossible. Peter was shovelling down breakfast as he would be late to college if he didn't get a move on…squawking out a 'bye!' to anyone in ear shot, he grabbed up his bag and left quickly. The other team members were in a similar rush as the organisation they were involved with, S.H.I.E.L.D. would be waiting for a debrief on the nights activities.

'…I'm home late tonight dad. It's art club and we are going to…'…she began…

'Right Squirt, have a good day, eat all your lunch!' and with that he was gone.

The room fell quiet with only Friday breaking the silence.

'Charlotte, Luke is waiting in the lobby for you when you are ready'.

'Alright, I'll be a couple of minutes then I'll be down' she replied, scraping her uneaten breakfast in the garbage and quickly washing her dishes.

'Very well'.

Grabbing up her bag and a folder she headed for the lift and quickly arrived in the foyer of the tower that was teeming with people arriving for work and on saying hello to Luke her driver, they both headed out to the car and then off to school. The journey wasn't bad, it took about 40 minutes to get there and she always got there a good 15 minutes before school began.

Izzy was waiting as usual as the car drove up the gravelled driveway around the large expanse of grass. She was sitting on a wall swinging her legs, her school regulation shoes clinking as they connected. All students wore a maroon and green uniform, most kids hated it, and deviation from the uniform code brought strict discipline consequences and Charlotte was always keen to avoid those so she always stayed as close to the rules as she could.

'Bye Luke, I'll be done by five tonight!' she said as she got out, he waved and after Charlotte shut the door, he drove off back to the tower.

'Lottie! Hurry up! I've got the new fashion magazine, there's some great stuff in it!' Izzy jumped off the wall, a few inches taller than her best friend, they both linked arms and headed into school, along with dozens of others.

It was around 2 pm when the fire alarm shocked everyone on the premises and on quickly evacuating the building it became apparent that it wasn't a drill as thick, black smoke was billowing out of the top floor of the main building. All the students ran to roll-call, and luckily for Charlotte and Izzy, they were already out on the field as it was their physical education class.

The fire continued to consume the building, began to spread to others, kids and staff were still spilling out of other buildings the fire brigade stormed up the driveway and began attacking the fire with water but the heat was immense, especially with the summer breeze fanning the flames. Of course it drew great interest and it didn't take long for news crews to start circling the area in their helicopters…

 **oOo**

'…it is believed the fire broke out about 15 minutes ago in a science laboratory. Initial reports say there are a handful of students and staff who have not yet been accounted for. The Franklin school is well renowned for its students, children of the rich and famous…'…

'Tony! Wait up! Dammit, why can't he ever wait for the rest of us?' Clint and Bruce ran towards the elevator, calling for the other team members to pick them up with the jet. Tony of course…had flown out the nearest window and was now streaking across the sky towards the school, even from this distance, he could see the distant black smoke once he cleared the tops of the sky scrapers.

'Friday, can you locate Charlotte through her phone or watch?'

'I'm afraid not Sir. As you know, the student's at Charlotte's school are not allowed to have their cell phones or smart watches on them during the school day'.

'Who invented that shitty rule? I forgot about that one. How many kids are still missing?'

'According to police and fire service reports, they have located a small group of people in the southern wing on the third floor. The fire is above them but spreading quickly'.

'How far out are we Friday?'

'Four minutes Mr Stark. Scanning now, there are six people trapped in an internal room, the density of smoke is blocking all escape routes. I propose you make an access point about two metres to the left, then you will be able to help them down one by one, there should be enough time'.

'On it. Lead me in Friday, I don't want to be blasting walls down on their heads!'

'Understood Sir'…

Streaking around the building, the students out on the school field watching worriedly with the staff, quickly spotted Iron man as he slowed near the wall, and blasted a hole in it before disappearing. All her fellow students looked at Charlotte…super happy Iron Man had arrived, but Charlotte felt…odd. Especially as now the Quinjet was touching down and the team were racing out and running to the building as well. At that point a huge explosion on the other side of the building sent all the kids and staff running back further across the field, police herding them to safety. It was getting difficult to see just what was going on but within minutes, the missing students and staff members appeared coughing as they were helped to ambulances to give them oxygen and ensure they weren't hurt.

Charlotte then noticed Iron Man walking towards the huge group of students, who began to applaud him. Except her, she found herself melting away to the back of the group. Izzy looked her oddly….

'Tell him…tell him I'm fine, I went to the bathroom or something and I'll see him later, at home!'

She fled…

 **oOo**

The school was 70% damaged. An experiment gone wrong had caused the blaze and thanks to Iron Man, no-one had died, the team had stayed to help quell the flames then headed back once all the students had been taken home by their parents. Except Charlotte of course, she had ducked out over the wall and was walking home. She knew the consequences, but something drove her to leave the place once Iron Man arrived. It had all become clear, she could never, ever compete with Iron Man. She could never, ever live up to the sort of person Peter Parker and Spiderman was. Every Avengers team member was worth so much more to her father than she was, there was no point in even trying to be his kid anymore. She had wanted to make herself look nice and wear nice clothes, he wouldn't let her. What else was there for an average teenager to do when faced with impossible odds? Charlotte didn't know anymore, but she would count down the days when she hit 18 years old and could leave home. Live in a small apartment, have a job and just…be herself. But who was she? She had no clue who about that one or what she was going to do.

Basically, in her eyes, she had no true identity. She was the average kid of Iron Man. Genius, billionaire, loved by millions. In contrast, Charlotte was a massive disappointment and she didn't think she could deal with it anymore.

 _Shit…_

The familiar clunk of Iron Man's boots landing on the sidewalk behind her.

'…and the reason you left the school grounds is…?' By the time she turned around to look up at her father, the suit was gone and he stood there in his work t-shirt, jeans and sneakers, hands folded in front of him, staring.

'…you were busy and…you didn't need to find me. I was okay, I AM okay, I just thought I'd go home and not be in the way of your job and…' was as far as she got in her usual squeaky voice.

Tony ran his hand over his face.

'What got me there Charlotte? What do you think my first thought was when I was given the news about your school? YOU. I had to make sure YOU were okay. Then your little crazy friend told me you left? Again, here you are, walking on your own! Again, you're grounded. I will get it into your head Charlotte that this behaviour is dangerous…'…

'So what?'…she suddenly blurted out.

'What do you mean?' Arms now folded as he frowned as Luke pulled alongside with the car, waiting…

'So what if it's dangerous? One less thing to worry about right? If I'm not about you can just carry on with your job, I know I'm just in the way and always will be!' Tears sprang to her eyes as he just stared.

For what seemed an age, they stood and stared at each other.

'Luke will take you home'…the nanobots once more covered his body as he struggled with his temper and Charlotte watched as he streaked away into the sky…

Luke got out the car and opened the door for Charlotte, she got in and on the drive home…she cried bitterly. There was absolutely nothing on this Earth that linked them in anyway apart from the blood bond.

NOW what…?


	14. Chapter 14

****A/N – Hey folks! Just wanted to let you know that after this chapter I'm going away for a holiday so won't be able to update anytime soon until end of the month, just a heads up so I'll try to do my best with this chapter and hope you'll enjoy it. I really appreciate your reviews and would like to address the fact of where's Pepper? In my little AU world, there hasn't been a relationship between her and Tony for quite a while but that IS on the cards in the next few chapters, feelings will be rekindled! But of course…where will that leave Charlotte? You'll have to wait and see! BUT before all that, a bit of grief is coming her way!**

 **Chapter 14** – Is there any hope at all…?

The morning of her birthday, Charlotte stared out of the window and down onto the busy streets of the city. She leaned against the windowsill and traced her finger along the lines of a fly on the outside, scurrying about, it looked like it hadn't a care in the world. Not like her, grounded AGAIN and seeing as school was out for not only the summer, but a week early due to the fire. The school authorities didn't know if they'd be ready for the new academic year…but they'd pull out all the stops to try to get the rebuilding done as fast as they could.

It was almost 9.30 am and she was in her pyjamas as she had nowhere to go and nothing to do. Time with Izzy over the summer was banned, no phone and no internet access. And worst of all, no baseball. It was going to be a looooong and booooring summer indeed. With a sigh she pushed herself back and thirst drove her out of her room to the kitchen and main living area. As usual there was no-one about and it didn't surprise her to see her dad wasn't about to wish her happy birthday either. It's what he used to do, made sense he'd do it now.

'Friday, where is everyone?'

'Your father is out at a meeting, he is expected home later this evening as the meeting is out of town. The rest of the team are out of the tower attending to their personal affairs'.

'..so if no-one is here, can I get out of the tower?'

'Unfortunately not Charlotte. Security have been informed of the fact you need to stay home for your safety, you will not be allowed to leave the tower'.

Great. What a shitty birthday this was going to turn out to be. Her uneaten breakfast once more went into the garbage. It was the fourth time this week she had gone without…

'Can you call my dad, ask him to call me back please Friday?'…

'Of course, he is unavailable at the moment but I will inform him once he allows calls'.

And she had to be content with that.

It was almost midday when Friday informed Charlotte her father was calling. Charlotte, still in pyjamas, was laid out on the couch, watching the huge TV in the main living area.

'Hey Shorty, Friday said you wanted me to call. Everything okay?'

Why did he always act like everything was okay, when it wasn't…?

'Yes, I'm fine. Um…what time are you going to be home?'

'Late I'm afraid kiddo. The team will be back later I'm sure. Tomorrow I'll be about. Gotta go! And PLEASE behave…'…

Silence fell once more when the call ended.

'Happy birthday to me' she whispered to herself as she wiped a tear away.

 **oOo**

'…Hammerhead, she has no clue and I'm hoping it'll do some good because I'm at a loss as what to do at the moment'…big words from Tony.

Tony WAS at a meeting but it wasn't a meeting his daughter would ever think of. At the compound where much of the Avengers work was done that couldn't be done at the tower, Tony had had the bright idea of 'pretending' to have forgotten Charlotte's birthday with a huge surprise to organise for later. No party with school friends like before, but a trip to end all trips, Thor had offered to take Charlotte on a trip to Asgard. An honour only for very special people, she would be welcomed by his people and would spend a few weeks of the summer vacation learning a completely different way of life.

'Man of Iron, do not fear. Everything is set, my mother is looking forward to meeting her and I'm sure it will be an experience to end all experiences. She will be in the best hands'…Thor placed a hand on Tony's shoulder, gave a smile.

'No dangerous shit, no talking to strangers, no boys and no wearing indecent clothing!'

Thor grinned wider as Clint bellowed over from where he was folding 'Thor' napkins of all things.

'This coming from the man who set the precedent for being the biggest party-goer in history, who had a stream of women, drank his own fluid weight in booze and wore the most questionable clothing? We've all seen the google images Tony!'

'Shut it Robin Hood. This is different, you and Laura are just the same with your ankle-biters!' Clint grinned as he dodged a paper cup being thrown in his direction.

'So you know the plan, you go in an hour to surprise her then fly her back her back here for a birthday tea with the Avengers'… Tony rubbed his hands together, thinking once more, his party plans would be perfection itself.

'…there is no way the big green guy will be happy sitting down to tea and cake Tony, so I'm wearing this'…Bruce held up a t-shirt with the hulk plastered across it.

Thor threw back his head and laughed as Tony hurried across to check to final arrangements for the table decorations. The whole team would be there, in full costume and they even had fancy dress for Charlotte to wear, items of each Avengers costume. He was determined to show her she was important to him, he couldn't say it well enough, she seemed to have shut down and even having Sam try to talk to his daughter was drawing a blank. He didn't want to have strangers involved but Sam was pushing towards that, he was in the mind-set that a therapist she didn't know would be able to encourage Charlotte to open up and talk about her feelings. Tony was getting desperate, he knew he was failing, hell, he had even spoken to Pepper recently about it and she was going to visit when Charlotte was back from Asgard. Pepper! Their relationship had been on the back burner for quite some time. Although they spoke regularly regarding business issues, their personal life together had cooled over a silly argument a few years ago. It hit him recently how maybe if she had been around, he might have made a better job of…

Tony shook himself out of it. Folding his arms he smiled at his efforts. A silly birthday tea. With cake and ice-cream. With the people who had been around since Charlotte could remember. No strangers, nobody only being there because of the Avengers, they were all there for her, and her alone. The pile of presents was being expertly stacked by Peter with the help of Natasha, there were more presents than Charlotte would have seen in her life…

Even Steve was involved, Wanda and Vision were also joining in and were decorating the room with streamers and god knows what else.

 **oOo**

At 2pm, the elevator door opened and Thor strode in.

'Little Stark! Where are you hiding?' he bellowed as he looked around the main living area, his red cape swishing behind him.

'Ah, there you are. Gather some personal items together, we have an important mission to go on!'

'Mission? What mission?' Charlotte, still in her damn pyjamas, got the shock of her life when her hero strode into the main living area.

'Do not talk, go dress, and pack your things!'

She scuttled, when Thor demanded something was done, you did it…what was going on? Was there a problem?

A few minutes later, with Thor trying to hide his grin, Charlotte hurried out with a backpack on, dressed in jeans, shirt, sweater and sneakers.

'Where are we going? What's happening?'

'The Avengers team needs us to go help them. Come with me, quickly!'

Striding back to the elevator with Charlotte running alongside they dodged people in the foyer (the security guards had been briefed so let her out and on wrapping his cloak around the tiny girl, he hoisted her up, smiled and raised his hammer…

'Do not fear, I will not let you fall'…

 **oOo**

It was certainly an experience she would never forget, clutching to Thor tightly, she dared to open her eyes only once but quickly closed them again as the wind whistled in her ears then as they landed in the compound, it was eerily quiet…

'Sssshh, you go that way, I'll go this way, be careful Little Stark!' Without letting her respond, Charlotte watched him stride off, wondering what on Earth she was meant to do now! She wasn't an avenger, Thor had obviously been drinking or lost his marbles she was sure, but clutching the straps of her backpack, Charlotte walked slowing in the direction of the door Thor had pointed to. It was all so quiet as she carefully opened the door, her heart hammering in her chest and her breath quickened as the door closed behind her.

'….hello?' she called out, her voice echoing in the dark corridor. Something was obviously wrong with the lights. Creeping forward, silent…..slow, she reached the door at the end of the corridor and slowly opened it. It creaked and she winced, expecting something awful to jump up and eat her or something…

'SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!'

She staggered backwards as the lights blasted on, balloons fell to the floor and the whole team in uniform, Thor included, except Bruce, he was in his t-shirt…

'..w…what?' she squeaked as Iron Man clunked over to help her up. The suit then retracted back as he hugged her tightly.

'Happy birthday sweetheart. Did you really think I'd forget?'

Well, that did it of course, she burst into tears…

Charlotte had the best time ever. Just complete and utter silliness with the world's bravest heroes. They played pass the parcel, musical chairs and a million other games. Her pile of presents amazed her, from the much coveted hair straighteners to super fancy gadgets and a ton of stationary and art supplies (that she loved).

…and then the best present ever.

'You may have been wondering why you needed to pack, Little Stark. Are you ready to take a trip with me?' Thor once more wrapped his cloak around her after she had put her backpack on at his request.

'A trip where?' her head was reeling now!

'To Asgard!...'

'Your home?' she squeaked, then looked to her father who came across and kissed her cheek.

'Behave! That's all I ask, and have a great time! See you in a few weeks Shorty! I'll get your presents home, don't worry'…

'Come! My mother is awaiting her very special guest, she has prepared a suite fit for a princess for you!'

Well flip. Once again she was hoisted up, yelled goodbye to the team who had come to wave goodbye and before she knew it, they were being propelled upwards at a fast rate of knots. This trip of course took longer, she dared to peek again, the colours of the stars shooting by, and this was things dreams were made of. Wouldn't be long now when she would be meeting Thor's family and…

That's as far as her thoughts got. SOMETHING crashed into the side of them, Thor gave a bellow, he tried his best to hang on to Charlotte but something seemed to have hold of him, it was hard to see, Charlotte screamed as he let go…she was falling…he was being dragged away…

'…wherever you land, do not move! I will find you!'

…then blackness.

She opened an eye. Seemed she was in the dirt, somewhere. Back home? No, this was dark, volcanic soil…every limb seemed to hurt, she guessed she must have fallen hard somewhere, wherever that somewhere was.

Carefully pushing herself up, she heaved herself to her feet, aware of blood on her cheek. Looking around over a grim landscape. A cold breeze blew her hair about and there seemed to be nothing in view except for hills and mountains. Clouds scudded overhead as she put her hands deep in her pockets, it was cold…

'…Thor?' she called to no-one on particular…

'Not Thor. I'm just wondering who YOU are!' a voice from behind, she quickly turned, scared…

A tall man, long brown hair, wearing a long green coat.

'…who are you?' Charlotte asked, taking a step backwards.

'I believe I asked the question first'. The man smiled and placed his hands behind his back.

'Charlotte, Charlotte Stark. Where am I? Where's Thor gone?'

'Ah, so YOU are the one my dear brother was bringing home to visit. We have a lot to talk about, you and I. It's such a pity you got mixed up in this but you are stuck now. But it will be fine…' he offered her a hand…

'Stuck? I can't be stuck! My dad will go mad!'

'Aren't parents such a bore? I am sure you don't want to stay here, it will rain soon. Come with me, I'll take you somewhere for some food and warmth. Do not worry! You'll see Thor again soon'. He smiled wider as he took Charlotte's hand.

 _Don't go with strangers, don't talk to people you don't know…_

But she had no choice, here there was no shelter, no warmth, she'd freeze!

'My name is Loki. Thor's got himself tangled up in something he needs to deal with, I'll ensure you make it to my home, I promise'…

 _Eventually…_


	15. Chapter 15

****A/N – Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay but I developed bronchitis alongside going on holiday and now it's back to work as schools now back. Booo! So I hope you enjoy this chapter and thanks once again to reviewers, followers and favourites of the story, I really appreciate it.**

 **Chapter 15 – Lost**

' _So, she's just…average then? No glimmer of genius at all….?'…_

 _It was at this point the teacher of Tony Starks seven year old daughter wanted to punch him in the head, no matter who he was._

' _Mr Stark, how do you define average? Charlotte is a cheerful girl who does her very best and will try anything if asked. She is polite and gets her homework done on time. At her age, I really don't feel you should be…'…_

' _Yes, I understand perfectly Miss Lewis. Perhaps Charlotte will do better in a school, a PRIVATE school of where they have the capacity to push her a little more to find that genius?' He folded his arms, thoroughly pissed off with the way this parent-teacher conference was going._

' _I'll ignore the snub towards the state-funded education system Mr Stark, I can assure you your daughter gets all the support and…'…_

 _Tony cut her off by standing, pulling out his sunglasses with a flourish and putting them on._

' _This meeting is over Miss Lewis. Rest assured, Charlotte will be placed in a school where I can be MORE than assured her education is top-notch. Good day!'…_

 _He turned and strode out. He had been highly unreasonable towards the teacher but he wasn't satisfied with his kid being 'just average'…not a chance!_

 _Miss Lewis was left simmering with anger._

'… _that…pompous, arrogant, conceited….PIG!' she snapped at no-one in particular…_

 **oOo**

'Tony! Relax…we'll find out what the hell happened and get her back!'

Steve and Sam were hanging onto Tony, preventing him from activating his suit to shove Thor through a blender. It was three weeks since Thor had been attacked whilst transporting Charlotte to Asgard and he was no closer to finding out where the hell she had disappeared to.

'Alright..ALRIGHT! I'm calm! Let go dammit!'…

Pulling down his t-shirt Tony threw a death glare towards the God of Thunder who watched silently after explaining to Tony he had…sort of lost Charlotte…somewhere…

Not totally convinced he was calm enough, Steve and Sam took a tentative step backwards.

'Can't you get that gate watcher guy to spot her? You've explained about him before'…asked Bruce who was perched on a stool, arms folded and chewing on the end of his glasses.

'Charlotte has passed from his sight, so someone is deliberately hiding her. There is something else…Loki has also moved from his sight. It is more than a coincidence'…

'…then I'll snap his neck too, after I've done yours!'

'Tony, you aren't helping'... Rhodey frowned, standing up from the chair he had been sat on when Tony exploded, he had been glad Sam and Steve were closer.

A pause before Thor spoke again.

'I will find her and I will find out why, I will return soon with news…'…with a flourish, he turned and and headed back toward the elevator with the rest of the team looking on. Once he had gone, it was Natasha who broke the silence.

'Don't worry Tony, it'll be alright. We'll get her back'…

Tony was now staring out of the window, a horrible sick feeling churning through his stomach. It didn't help that after Charlotte left on her trip, Pepper had responded to his S.O.S call at trying to be a better parent and feelings were being rekindled, on a mammoth scale. But alongside that, Pepper had given him such verbal earache of his obvious failure at raising his kid and she blamed herself, the guilt was being piled on by the truck-load. A sigh…when they got Charlotte back, he hoped with everything he had that maybe, finally…with Pepper's help, they could finally be a family.

Although…when he thought about the word family, the memories of his own parents gave him the heebie-jeebies. Maybe some people were not meant to be parents, maybe that was his problem…? He remembered the relief when he packed Charlotte off to boarding school when she was seven years old. Not seeing her for weeks at a time, with him convincing himself it was for the best and THEN having the nanny return when she was home for the holidays, had taken a huge burden off his shoulders. Now though, he knew that's where things started going wrong…

 **oOo**

'…where is this Loki?' Charlotte asked, looking around the alien landscape. It was odd, but it was beautiful. She looked up at him as he smiled back down at her.

'It is best you don't know, not that you would be able to pronounce it anyway. Come, have a seat, and let's talk'…

'Is this a café or something?'…she asked, sitting on a beautiful chair that looked like it had been crafted out of golden twigs and leaves from a tree. There were people…aliens…of all shapes and sizes here, going about their business. To their right, a mountain range, and to their left…it could only be described as a city of some sort, and they were on the very edge.

'Got it on one!' he nodded his head and widened the smile as someone Charlotte guessed to be a waiter came out to ask what they wanted.

He lent forward and lowered his voice, clasping his hands together on the table.

'I think it's highly unlikely they serve burger and fries here so I'll do my best to get something you like' he grinned.

Charlotte gave a giggle. She had heard a lot of bad things about Loki, she knew he was the one who had wrecked New York a few years ago, and she had been away at school and didn't really remember that much about it, having been quite a few years younger. But he was fun and so easy to talk to, you didn't have to be on parade with Loki.

Soon, they were eating what only could be described as honey on warm bread with little colourful….things that tasted sweet. And to wash it down, a sweet and pleasant tasting fruit juice. It was simple, yet one of the best things Charlotte had ever eaten. In fact, they called for seconds…!

'So why did you knock Thor out of the sky?' she asked Loki between mouthfuls of honey bread.

'Ah, now you see…that wasn't me. The Asgardians, like you humans, have enemies and obviously they saw Thor travelling with you and decided to take a chance'…he sipped his drink and lent back in his chair.

'How did you know where I fell then?' She stopped eating and stared at him.

'..call me nosey dear Charlotte! My brother carries the worries of Asgard on his shoulders and I thought I'd just watch and see him handle himself. What I didn't expect though, was you to be with him at that time, although I knew of your impending arrival…'…he raised his eyebrows at her…

'I think I should go home'…she said in her squeaky voice, eyes filled with tears.

'..and you will, soon. But for now, you will have to trust because…the people who attacked Thor, are now looking for you. They believe you are…royalty from another planet because of the welcome he had set up for you. I'm afraid you are in grave danger and if you went home, you wouldn't be safe there'…

Charlotte's eyes widened…

'..but you don't know me, why are you being so nice? I mean…New York…'…her voice trailed off.

Loki lent his chin on his hands, elbows on the table…

'Thor spoke of you to our mother, about your struggles with your father. I heard. I too…have a difficult relationship with my father. I felt…a compassion'….

 **oOo**

'The Visitors come from far beyond our realms. They are a race we have not encountered for millennia. But if they are still searching, then they have not found her'…

Thor was speaking with his father, on the balcony and looking out over Asgard.

'You must tread carefully my son. They are intent on stealing your young friend, it could cause great unease in the cosmos…'…

'I understand father…'…

'I suggest you first find Loki. The fact he was passed beyond our sight at well as Charlotte's, makes me suspect he is involved somehow. Though I am not convinced he is friendly with the Visitors…'…

Thor turned to face his father once more after looking out over the balcony.

'You think he is protecting her?'

'It is possible. Your brother is not one for playing games such as this. If he were making a grab for power once again, the Visitors would already have the girl. Seek out Loki's favourite places, he will be using his magic to mask our eyes…'…

 **oOo**

'…he sent me to school when I was about seven. Boarding school I mean, he didn't want me, and I think sometimes he still doesn't. He's super-brains of the world and I'm….just me'…Charlotte shrugged. She had bared her soul to Loki, who had listened without condemnation…

'…then Peter came along, he's Spiderman and he loves him more than me even though he's not related. I just get on with things now, I know I'll never be as good as Peter. He speaks maths and science like my dad, I like painting and drawing but even that doesn't match up to what Peter can do…'…she shrugged, hands wrapped around the glass of 'Nectar Water', the apparent name of the drink…

'I feel the same in the presence of my brother often. I'm not a birth child yet I was raised alongside him. It came as a shock when I found out the truth'…Loki leaned back on the chair, his mouth curled up at the sides but hiding his emotions. This was a conversation he thought he would never have…sharing inner thoughts with a kid from Earth. How bizarre…

'We aren't too different, you and I. You are fighting to gain the love of your father because a usurper in the shape of a spider has taken his attention, even though you are his true blood. And me? I'm an outsider and have to fight for attention because my father has his real son, I'm fake and that's what I will always be'…

A long silence ensued…before Loki spoke again.

'What would you want Charlotte, if you had the chance...?'…

After nibbling a little more of the bread and honey she looked up again.

'…to be able to do things like Peter Parker and have his intelligence, then maybe my dad will truly love me and not feel obliged to love me just because I'm his kid…but there's no chance of that. Things like that just don't happen to average people like me'…This was one of the most profound things Charlotte had ever said. But she was slowly growing up, things were changing…she suddenly became aware of Loki grinning manically at her, like she had just told a joke or something.

'…but what if they did?'…


	16. Chapter 16

****A/N – Hey all. Now I'm back at work, it means I can't update as often as I did in the holidays or as much as I'd like, but here you are! Hoping you are all well and hope you enjoy this chapter. Thank you so much for your continued support and reviews, I love reading them. Bit of a bounce about this chapter, the flashback to the past, present day on both Earth and who knows where? I'm not going to do big battle scenes as I haven't the skill for that so you'll just get the gist of what happened. Take care all!**

Chapter 16 – Now what?

' _What do you mean, you aren't going?'…Pepper stood with her arms folded, frowning. Yet another argument over what had started with a trivial thing._

' _What I mean Peps. I'm not going. I've sat through shit knows how many recitals and painful musical reviews I can't take it anymore. She doesn't even do much! I have to endure two hours of other brats doing amazing things then Charlotte tings a triangle? Skitters across the stage dressed as a fucking frog? What do I pay that school for?...'…Tony had slammed down the spanner, he was covered in oil and grease, and the recital was due to start in an hour…_

' _You selfish bastard! Charlotte thinks you're going, you let her down the last two shows, now you're doing it again?' Pepper had exploded, Tony hadn't quite expected it, and he was a little surprised, if he was honest._

' _She's your daughter! You're meant to go and support her! There's no-one else, what will she think if it's just me again?' Pepper continued to rage, now marching up and down._

' _Are you sure about that? She's so different I reckon someone must have tampered with the DNA because I can't see ANYTHING in that kid that belongs to me!'_

 _The slap he got was hard. Made him drop his spanner then he held his face and Pepper dropped her voice to a dangerously low level…and stepped closer…_

' _We are done Tony Stark. I never thought you could be so….so SHALLOW as to talk about your beautiful daughter like that! I'm going, you do what you want but this is the last time I'm going…our business relationship stays the same, our personal relationship? That's over. I can't bear to be near you right now…'…_

 _Once more the eight year old Charlotte Stark had no-one except Pepper at the school show. It was at this point she really gave up trying…and soon after that, she was sent to boarding school…_

 **oOo**

Looking over the alien landscape, Charlotte pulled the cloak Loki had given her tightly around her. The sun was still up but it was getting so cold. Worry was setting in, she wanted to go home…but Loki insisted it wasn't yet safe, that THEY (whoever THEY were) would find her if she went back. He had assured her she was masked, as was he, no-one could 'track' them but to be patient, and things would be alright.

It was three weeks since her birthday, three weeks since Thor had arrived to take her to visit Asgard. She hadn't even got there yet, she was….well, no clue where she was! This place was like a giant party planet, she had seen so much over the last three weeks that some would never see in a lifetime. Loki seemed to know many of them, they all treated her decently but still, she wanted to now go home…

'Today, I am going to show you what you could be, you can be so much more than the Avengers'…he had said that first morning after she had arrived. They sat and ate breakfast (weird food, but it was edible) then he showed her what he was really capable of….it had been scary, at first….but then she had been given the chance to try. He was allowing her one gift, the last three weeks he had called 'training'…then she could choose. Training? She wasn't an Avenger, and never would be!

'Charlotte, are you ready? I believe dinner is being served'….Loki bowed low, if nothing else…he was a gentleman.

She turned around and went to join him, tonight he was making her the offer of a gift, but she hadn't made her choice just yet…

 **oOo**

'Dammit Hammerman, if you don't start making some sense soon, I'll ram that hammer somewhere you…'….

'Tony!' snapped Pepper.

'You aren't helping, Thor's told us everything he knows. We have to trust his judgment'…

'Pepper's right' Bruce threw in. Up to this point he had been pretty silent on the whole thing. Charlotte had been missing for three days now (….it was three weeks for Charlotte, the fabric of time and space often rippled…creating time differences across the galaxy).

'I suggest we go with Thor's plan. We can get the Quinjet safely though the portal, giving us a better chance to track her down. We don't all need to go, some of us should stay here, it could be a trap as we discussed. I think you should stay Tony, your emotions could get the better of you'…

'Of course I'm going you green goblin! She's my daughter, I'll be damned if I'm going to sit back and do nothing!'…his nerve were stretched so thin, he was ready to snap at any moment.

'…and Bruce is right Tony. You need to stay here. I'll go with Thor, Wanda and Vision can come with Bruce….the rest stay here. You need to trust us to get the job done'…Steve, leader of the Avengers pushed himself away from the wall he had been leaning on.

'I don't believe you lot! In one breath when she goes missing you give me a hard time because I'm not looking for her, and in another breath you're telling me not to go?' Tony glared at them all, Pepper grabbed his hand, gave it a squeeze. Thank god for her, she always managed to help him calm down.

'This is a bit different though Tony. Going off-planet is a completely different kettle of fish'…Steve was speaking again when Peter interrupted.

'I'll go too!'

'Not a chance Spiderling. If I'm grounded so are you…'…

 **oOo**

It took the team four days to track Charlotte down and a further two days to help Thor stop those who had attacked him and caused Charlotte to end up on an unknown planet. The battle raged as the Avengers expected it to. The group of strangers Odin had talked to Thor about were many but lacked the advantages the Avengers had.

And on finally coming across Loki and Charlotte, Thor was about to bash Loki into oblivion when Charlotte jumped in front of him.

'Don't hurt him! He hasn't done anything wrong! He's my friend!'…the team looked at each other as Thor lowered his hammer, and Loki gave that little annoying smile he always had when getting the better of his brother.

'..but he kidnapped you Charlotte' Steve said, taking a step forward.

'No he didn't. He found me when Thor dropped me and we've been hiding from those aliens'…she linked her arm through Loki's, throwing Captain America a defiant look, who returned it with a frown.

'Well, it's time to get you home, your fathers been worried'…

'Worried? Tony Stark? Doubtful…' She replied scornfully.

'This isn't like you' Bruce widened his eyes.

'Yeah, well maybe I'm tired of being ignored by him…'…

Yes, she wanted to go home but secretly felt glad her dad was worried. What a horrid person she must be…but then, he deserved it, right…?

'Time to go' Steve said, indicating the way the Quinjet could be found.

'Are you coming Loki?' Charlotte turned around and looked up at her friend.

'Alas, I cannot. But I won't forget you and we WILL meet again one day. Remember your gift Charlotte, you will know its worth when it's time'…that little smile again then he picked up her hand and kissed it.

'Loki, you have caused some issues'…his brother came alongside him as they watched Charlotte and the team head towards the jet.

'Me, brother? You always assumed the worst. Charlotte will soon be making her own impact on that puny planet…'…a grin as the jet took off and headed back towards where home was…

 **oOo**

Charlotte was nearly crushed from the hug she got from her father..

'Are you okay? Did anyone hurt you? Whose ass do I have to beat in revenge? Where were you…?'…he garbled out before Charlotte replied.

'I'm fine Dad, no-one hurt me. I'm okay…'…she raised her eyebrows. Once upon a time she would have been over the moon he seemed to care. Now, it just washed over her as if his concern was inconsequential. What did that even mean, she didn't care about him anymore? Well, that wasn't true but…the memories and hurt of the past kept prodding her, her emotions seemed so much more heightened at the moment. Everything was…exaggerated in a way. All she wanted to do was kick her father in the shin and punch him in the nose in response to his fake concern, because that's what it was in her eyes. Fake. All this was just a show to the others.

'I just want to go to bed, I'm tired…'…

The rest of the team had all headed off to clean up after getting back to the tower so it was just Charlotte and Tony at this point in time. Tony stood back up after the hug and looked down at his daughter. She seemed…different.

'You sure you're alright?'

'Yes, for the last time, yes! For god's sake Dad! Once upon a time you didn't care and now you do? Don't you think it's a bit too late to bother now?'…she turned and marched off, leaving her father with his jaw hanging open at her outburst.

 **oOo**

'It's good you're back Charlotte, everyone missed you'…Pepper smiled kindly that evening as they sat down for dinner. It was just Tony, Pepper and Charlotte, seeing as Charlotte had been missing for a little while.

Charlotte just smiled and picked up her fork, she wasn't in the mood to talk but thought she had better make an effort.

'I thought we could go on vacation, the three of us. Anywhere you want, you choose Charlotte. Somewhere warm I reckon'…Tony smiled at his daughter as he picked up his glass of beer…

'I don't know. Anywhere you want'…a shrug.

'…but surely there's somewhere you want to visit? We could all do with a break'…

'I'm fine dad, you just choose'.

Dinner didn't end as well as it started. Tony, wondering what was wrong with Charlotte kept pushing and pushing to try to get an answer, Pepper then tried to get him to back off as Charlotte got more and more agitated but of course finally it happened.

She didn't really know at what point it happened or what emotion triggered it, but the gift from Loki manifested itself as absolute silence took over the tower.

Charlotte blinked, then blinked again. Oh god! She didn't mean to cause this! Standing, the scraping of the chair on the floor shattered the silence as she stared at her father and Pepper. They were completely and utterly still. Not moving, not even breathing. Loki's gift to her was to completely pause time. Now, everything in the universe was waiting for her to restart it again…

'… _time is a precious gift Charlotte. Your gift is the ability to pause time. Use it for good, use it for your own gain, the choice is yours. Your emotions will dictate when and where, your physical actions will restart it. Breathe deeply, three times, and once more time will continue onwards. Whether you are still in the same place when it does, depends on you…'…_

Walking to the window, she looked out over the city. Even the plane overhead was frozen! This was so odd, so weird…not even sure how she would use this gift, she turned and headed for her room and on laying down, closed her eyes, breathed deeply the required three times and the pause button was released.

Back in the kitchen where they had been having dinner, Tony set down his fork.

'Did you see her leave? What, am I going crazy here?...'…


	17. Chapter 17

****A/N – Hey everyone! Hope you are all keeping well. Apologies it's been a few weeks since the last update but work as always keeps me occupied. I need to win the lottery…! Thanks again to all reviewers and those who follow and favourite this story. I really appreciate it. OK, on with the show! So Charlotte has this new power that she is very unsure about, she's also feeling a little 'off' around her dad who is wondering what on earth is the matter (because of course, he has no clue, right?) and now school has reopened since the fire, Charlotte is back there but NOT looking forward to it. I'm also going to introduce a few 'issues' at school. Just like Peter Parker had Flash to contend with, Charlotte's going to bump into her own arch nemesis…a twist to a well-known character…**

 **Chapter 17 – New issues and problems**

'Charlotte? Luke is downstairs and is ready to leave otherwise you will be late for school'.

Friday knocked her out of her daydream and as she set her spoon down, she sighed. Damn school. Even with the extended holiday after the fire, Charlotte really wasn't keen on returning, especially as her friend Izzy had moved state, her parents getting the top jobs at some new hospital somewhere. Charlotte would miss her dreadfully, Izzy had been the only person who had welcomed her into the selective school without prejudice. The rest of them judged you on who your parents were…and even though her dad was the richest, Charlotte was so different to who he was, it made her stick out like a sore thumb.

'Friday, is my dad around?' she asked as she placed her dish and spoon into the dishwasher, then after closing the door she picked up her backpack.

'I'm afraid not Charlotte. He and Miss Potts left early to attend a meeting out of state. He aims to be back by 19.00 hours tonight. Would you like me to call him for you?'

'No thanks. See you later Friday'….she headed out, same feeling of gloom. Didn't take her dad long to drift back into his old habits of working all the hours God sent and even now he was back with Pepper, work was still the most important thing in his life. He HAD promised things would be better but Charlotte had now accepted it as her lot in life. Her feelings were different these days though, whereas a few years ago she felt so sad and yearned for his comfort although she knew she wasn't important to him, now…she felt indifferent. Whatever happened from here on in, she wouldn't waste time worrying over it. Time to block out all feelings, what will be…will be.

Heading out of the foyer, she noticed some of the team down there, in their everyday clothes, obviously busy with something or other so she skirted by them, undetected…not wanting to make polite conversation just for the sake of it. Outside, Luke was waiting in the car. One day, she would be able to drive herself to school. Well, once she had passed her test and saved enough money to buy her own car. Her birthday money pot was growing again, along with her modest allowance. She could get a part time job and that would help her save even quicker! This thought cheered her up, lord knows she needed it…one could argue that considering who her father was, she need never worry about such things as saving for things you needed, but Charlotte had vowed to herself she would never ask, nor take anything off him again. Things outside birthdays and Christmases, anyway.

The school building was magnificent. Easy to see where the money on top of the insurance had come from. As it was the science building, Stark Industries had funded an all new-improved suite of laboratories and classrooms. Rooms that someone like Charlotte, would never be able to excel in. Of course, the previous week, the whole place had had a fabulous unveiling. With guess who on hand to open the place, after all, it WAS named after him of course. The press had been there, Tony smiling, the teachers smiling, hell, even the caretakers had been smiling….but one smile had been forced. Once again, the five foot two inch tall petite average daughter of the genius Tony Stark had to endure the pizazz of the paparazzi and glamour of being the kid of one of the most famous men currently in existence.

'Bye Luke, see you later!' Charlotte ran up the stairs to the main door with all the other students and within moments was on her way to her form room. Nodding to a few people, she sat in her usual seat as the noisy students poured into the room.

'Hey, you the Stark kid?' a voice from behind, where Izzy used to sit, made Charlotte turn around. There sat an extremely pretty girl, long dark hair, curled expertly. It was clear this new girl had made an impression as the usual kids with no minds of their own had attached themselves like limpets to her, hanging off her every word.

'I'm Charlotte Stark, yes. Welcome to form 10TF…' she began, the usual greeting they gave newbies.

'…first impressions? She's as dumb as fuck!' The girl threw her head back, laughing, showing a row of perfect white teeth. The fan club copied and did the same.

'…sorry?' Charlotte almost spluttered out.

'You. Dumb. As fuck. They were right. Everyone knows it, doesn't matter how much money your weird dad has or the fact he flies around in a bean tin, he can't help having a dumb kid I guess!'…

Charlotte didn't time how long she had inadvertently paused time. All she knew was…everything stopped. The anxiety had caused the pause and she quickly tried to get a hold on her emotions but it was difficult. What should she do? Run away? Or just ignore it…? Whoever this new student was, she had clearly got it in for Charlotte and she didn't know why. So…concentrate, ignore her comments and hope she would soon get bored…

 _~blink~_

'Are you listening to me, you dumb bitch?'…the girl continued in her tirade when Charlotte began time once again.

'…yes'…

'Guess you're wondering who I am, right?' A sneer, it turned the pretty face into an ugly mess, the ugliness inside this girl oozing out of her skin…

Charlotte shrugged…

'We flew in last week. My dad wanted me to come here seeing as it's the best place in the state. AND we can afford it. He's in the same field as your crazy dad. Can't stand him. But get this, unlike YOU…I'm clever, just like my dad'…

How did this girl know everything about Charlotte? How did she know she wasn't a genius?

'My names Harriet. Most people call me Harri. Harri Osbourne'…

 **oOo**

Lunch break was a lonely time without Izzy. Charlotte had sent her a few messages but phones weren't allowed at the new school so she wouldn't get to them until the evening. A message came in from Friday.

 _Your father sends his apologies, but he and Miss Potts will be staying over in Texas overnight. They will be back at some point tomorrow and he will call you later when he gets the chance. Steve is staying in the tower tonight so you won't be alone._

Tempted to text back 'screw you'…she threw her cell phone into her backpack and went back to eating her lunch.

'Hey, it's Stupid Stark, can we sit here?'

Oh god, it was the new girl, Harri Osbourne, and her newly found posse.

'Sure, if you want'. Remembering something Steve had once told her, she tried to show she wasn't bothered. The best way to stand up to bullies, he often said, was to stand firm and don't react. Easier said than done, but at least she now knew what to expect, her time-stopping ability was for the moment, kept in check.

'So, how does it feel to be the thick as shit kid of Tony Stark?'…

'…better that, than having a vicious snakes tongue like yours'….Charlotte retaliated. Where did THAT come from…? But she would come to regret it, especially as it halted Harri in her verbal assault. From the posse there came a collective gasp, wide-eyed, they watched, this was better than TV! The insults continued, they got more and more personal, Harri knew things about Charlotte that she shouldn't…the intensity of the attack increased then of course, the result was inevitable.

Not sure at what point it happened, Charlotte just knew she had thrown the first punch.

Lunch trays flew, lunch bags followed and fists connected. Handfuls of hair pulled out and blood from noses splattered the floor and both girls were now embroiled in a fight to end all fights. The other students scattered before both Harri and Charlotte were pulled apart by two teachers, one of them the vice-principal.

'Who started this?' he demanded.

'SHE did! She's nuts!' screamed Harri, then turned on the water works.

Strangely enough, Charlotte didn't cry. She didn't really feel anything. But if she got suspended, at least she wouldn't have to be here for a while…

 **oOo**

'Fighting, Charlotte? Not really the best way to deal with things, is it?'…

This would no doubt be the first of many lectures.

Steve was the one who came with Luke to pick Charlotte up. With threats from Harriet's father, Norman Osbourne, about suing Tony's ass if Harri's pretty face was damaged in anyway, Charlotte just shut down. There was no point in talking, no point in explaining, and no point in saying anything because who would believe her, the average, plain-looking Charlotte, against the tall and fabulous-looking genius that was Harriet Osbourne…?

Steve sighed as Charlotte went into her room, then sent a message to Tony to say he had dealt with it but Charlotte had been suspended from school for two weeks for the seemingly 'unprovoked' attack on the Osbourne kid. But Charlotte rarely retaliated to anything, something had triggered it but it wasn't anything she was willing to share at this point in time.

'Friday, can you find details on Harriet Osbourne for me please?' Charlotte sat in front of her computer, turning it on.

'I'm afraid all I can tell is that she is 15 years old, and is the only daughter of Norman Osbourne, CEO of Oscorp. Other information is unfortunately private to outsiders'…

'But you'd tell the Avengers if they asked, right?'

'Yes, if it was to do with a matter of national security'.

Muttering under her breath, Charlotte switched off the computer and flopped on her bed, stared at the ceiling.

 **oOo**

'…so care to tell me why you hit her?'

Charlotte shrugged.

'That's not an answer Charlotte!'

Another shrug.

'You're not helping the situation here Squirt! I've got the VP and Osbourne baying for my blood and cheque book, and you're shrugging at me? You didn't hit her for no reason I'm guessing?'…

'I don't want to talk about it dad!' she burst into tears and ran off to her room. Tony didn't stop her, he just ran his hand through his hair. Once, all she wanted was his attention, now…she didn't even seem to want to talk to him. What was he doing wrong…?

'I'm guessing its teenage hormones Tony' Pepper said later.

'Do you want me to talk to her?' She hugged him, it was late and they had had a long 24 hours in Texas, dealing with business issues over there.

'Ever since she went with Thor then that crazy brother of his got involved, she's been acting strange. I don't understand it. Yes please, though I'm not sure how much good it will do'…

Tony was stumped. Whatever he did seemed to be wrong…

The following morning, the whole teams was over for breakfast, they had an important meeting with regards with some problems elsewhere.

'Dad…? Can I talk to you please?'…Charlotte had been there too, what with being suspended. After a good night's sleep, she felt better prepared to tell him what had happened.

They were all headed for the conference room.

'Squirt, you do pick your moments! Look, can this wait? We have something we need to deal with'…

There was always something to deal with. There was always another problem, something more important…

Charlotte stepped backward, the short girl looked up, anguish in her eyes.

'…then I guess you have to deal with it. Is this the point you tell me again I'm a curse?'…

It became very obvious to Tony that no-one was talking, the other Avengers had also stopped, looking their way…

'That's not fair Charlotte! You know what happens when we….' Tony started to respond, his hands on his hips, looking down on his daughter.

'She told me I was a curse. Only you knew that because you said I was. She knew my reports scores, she even knew my IQ level. I'm the thick as shit kid of Tony Stark. My new name is Stupid Stark, and she also knew how felt after I found out my mom was really dead. The same conversation I had with you dad. How did she know that? I guess because you told HER dad…you talk to him over business stuff…you did tell him, didn't you?'…

You could cut the atmosphere with a knife. Seemed to be ages before someone coughed, Charlotte wasn't sure who it was, but the stand-off between them was broken by Steve.

'Tony, maybe you should go sort this out, we can deal with whatever it is'….

'No, no…it's fine. Now Charlotte, I'm not sure exactly just what you think I've been saying but that is NOT the truth! Do you really think I'd tell Osbourne anything about you?'…he was now getting angrier by the minute, but it was about to trigger his anxiety…

'….then who did?'…


	18. Chapter 18

****A/N – Apologies folks, the season of practical exams and mock exams is upon us and I'm insanely busy! But here we go…thanks as ever to my reviewers! I'm actually planning on doing something quite bad and I hope you enjoy and rest assured, all will be fine in the end! I hope…**

 **Chapter 18 Relationships lost**

'Tony? Tony..TONY!'….Pepper's voice echoed though the tower, she had been searching for the last 10 minutes and she was fed up of searching.

'Up here!' his voice rang down from the stairs that led to the roof.

'What are you doing up there? It's freezing cold outside…'…she stood with her hands on her hips as he closed the door that led to the stair well.

'You haven't even changed, it's time to go'…

'I'm not going' came his reply.

'Dammit Tony, if I have to drag your sorry ass there in your oily rags then I will do, you are NOT missing this!'…

 **oOo**

Relative peace had blessed the Earth recently, seemed the word had gotten out about the heroes who were determined to defend Mother Earth to the death, so Earth, for now…was left well alone. Sort of made the Avengers pretty redundant. Hydra had been strangely silent for the last few years so the team had naturally gravitated away from each other. Vision and Wanda were travelling the world, Sam was busy with his counselling work and Steve had…well, no-one was really sure what Steve was up to. He was in New York somewhere but tended to keep himself to himself these days. Bruce was the only one still in the tower, he and Tony got on well, working on various project and schemes alongside the S.H.I.E.L.D. agency, preparing for that next attack, whatever it might be.

Natasha often still dropped in, she liked to keep her hand in with helping train the new recruits of the agency and of course there was definitely 'something' in the air between her and Bruce. Clint was once more with his family, he called once in a while but had totally immersed himself in family life, and relished in it…and Peter? Well, he had graduated M.I.T. a little while ago and was now head of the Stark Science Division. You couldn't waste brains like that. The Avengers it seemed, were now a distant memory…

 **oOo**

Tony stared out the window as Pepper drove the car expertly into the grounds of the university his daughter Charlotte had been in for the last three years. She had just finished a degree in Art, seems she had found an affinity with painting and printing landscapes and other wholesome…things. Tony had accepted her choice through gritted teeth and begrudgingly paid for his daughter's education although he secretly thought it a complete waste of time and effort. She was a Stark for god's sake! She should be working in the tower, doing science stuff!

The argument that had followed when Charlotte told her father where she wanted to go was the final nail in the coffin with regards to their relationship. The then 18 year old 5 foot two inch tall Daughter of the Genius had said that one day she would pay back the money for her education then that was it, they were through…

'…Tony, hello. Pepper' Charlotte gave Pepper an awkward hug and just nodded at Tony. He returned the nod.

'So. Here we are. Graduation. What will you do with your degree next Charlotte? How will you support yourself with painting pictures?' The billionaire genius extravagantly removed his sunglass and placed them into the top pocket of his made to measure suit.

'Tony' warned Pepper.

'It's okay Pepper. Actually, I've got a job Tony' There was no malice in Charlotte's voice. She viewed her father now as her biological donor. She had been calling him Tony for the last two years now.

'Doing what, doing street art in the hope someone throws you a few dimes?' Tony couldn't help himself. He had given up on their relationship a few years ago now. They just didn't connect anymore. Sure, he still loved her in a way but…well, it was hard to describe. Howard Stark would have been proud…

'I'm creating illustrations for a series of children's books, I'm going freelance'.

'Wow, that's great Charlotte!' exclaimed Pepper.

'It's time to take your seats' replied Charlotte as she turned and walked away in her gown before her father answered.

 **oOo**

'This isn't the way to life your life Miss Stark'.

'Hello Dr Strange' she sighed as he popped up out of thin air, as he did these days whenever she froze time.

She was stood on the platform at her graduation, staring down at the guests. Mainly, her father and Pepper. Out of all the people there, Tony might be the richest father, but she knew she felt the loneliest…

Stephen Strange had started appearing a few years ago, he had detected the timeline freezing and after investigating, found it was Mr Starks only child. After a little more snooping around, he had noticed she didn't do anything when the time was frozen, just tended to sit and contemplate, or remove herself from a situation.

The Dr sat on the edge of the platform and invited Charlotte to sit next to him.

'We've talked about this before. You have to deal with your problems, not stop time and try to avoid the situation. Did you ask Loki to remove this ability like you said you would last time?'

'I would if I had seen him. Either he nor Thor have visited the tower for years, or if they did, I haven't been there'…she replied with her squeaky voice.

'I can talk with your father, if you like.,.?'

'No, there's no point. I'm renting a small apartment on the other side of New York, near my new job. I won't have to see him after this next weekend. He'll be happy and we won't argue anymore' Charlotte turned to look at him, gave a wry smile.

'I'm almost 22 years old Doctor Strange, it's time to move on, I've spent too long dwelling on what might have been. It's my time now, I'm quite looking forward to starting my new job and living in my own place'…

Stephen stood, offered his hand to help her up.

'Then think about that, stop using this as an escape, it's not healthy. You don't want to get stuck here for eternity'…he gave a nod and stepped back through the portal he had arrived through.

Closing her eyes and concentrating, the timeline began again and the huge university hall was once again filled with the sounds of applause and cheering as diplomas were handed out to happy graduates.

 **oOo**

'Charlotte?'

Tony was stood awkwardly after helping his daughter load up her battered old car. (She refused to accept one he had brought her, had saved up for this herself. One might argue that being his daughter, she would be more than wealthy but Tony believed in not turning her head by giving her a modest allowance to teach her to budget her money…)

'Yes?' she looked up from the trunk where she had just squeezed in the last few items. The back seat and even the passenger seat was stuffed full with her belongings.

'…I don't like the thought of you living in Brooklyn. I've sorted an apartment, its high security and…'…

'Tony, I've told you. I'm on my own now and I'm fine with that. You've found being a parent difficult and that's okay. I'm moving to my rented place and its fine'…

He took a step forward. Desperately wanted to hug his daughter but knew he had left it too late, knew he was to blame for the lack of trust in their relationship. He had all the money in the world, one of the most intelligent men on the Earth and he couldn't even be a decent parent to his kid.

'Then take this' fishing out his wallet, he grabbed out a handful of dollar bills, tried to pass them to his daughter but she backed off rapidly.

'No Tony. I'm sorted. I told you, you don't need to worry about me anymore'…

She quickly got into the driving seat and closed the door, started the engine and the car took off down towards the gate, it was early and the first tower workers were arriving.

Looking in the rear view mirror she saw Tony, her father, stood watching. He seemed hunched over, still holding the money.

 _I guess I'll see you at some point…..maybe…_

Swallowing down the lump in her throat, Charlotte steered towards Brooklyn, and her new life…

 **oOo**

'When you finish feeling sorry for yourself, then I'll be back Tony. Your business won't run itself on it's own. Give me a call…'…Peppers voice was harsh, cutting…

The days that followed after Charlotte left sent Tony into a downward spiral. Most of the time he was now drunk, wallowing in self-pity he agonized over and over again as his failures as a father. On the wall of his lab, one of the first Iron Man masks hung, it seemed to be mocking him and Pepper had found him in hysterics, half laughing, half crying…trying to bash the mask to bit with a hammer. His lab was half trashed and she had had enough.

Bruce was the one who had dragged the semi-conscious Tony to his room, cursing his friend for his stubbornness and being too pig-headed. It was time to bring in the big guns…

Tony had slept for almost 48 hours when he woke. Bruce had kept him under and attached a drip to keep him hydrated. Blinking, confused, he sat up suddenly, the room dim…and found himself facing Stephen Strange, who was perched on a chair, right leg crossed over left and fingertips pressed lightly together.

'…have I been that out of it I need the services of a crack-pot doctor now?'…running his hand over his unkempt beard and through his messy hair.

'Dr Banner is under the impression you might need a little….specialist help'…

Tony swung his legs over the side of the bed, he was still wearing his clothes from two days ago, god, he needed a shower.

'What sort of help Stephen? My life has been washed down the john and I don't think there's anything anyone can do about it'…dragging himself up, he washed his face in the sink in the bathroom attached to the bedroom before coming back out to where Stephen was still sitting quietly.

'Friday, what day is it?'

'Wednesday Mr Stark' replied the A.I.

'Geez, I've lost…well, hell knows how many days'…

'At some point Tony, the world once again will need you and Iron Man. As a physician I am bound to tell you that you are in no fit state, physically or mentally to deal with it. I believe that you have a serious relationship issue to correct'…Stephen spoke out of the gloomy corner he was sat in.

'Look, if you're here to nag then just use the door! I take after my old man where my kid is concerned, never gonna see her again! Good ole Tony Stark, Iron Man inventor and all round good guy! Good father? Not a chance! There's only one way I could sort that screw up out, and that's to go back and start all over again. But unfortunately, that's one problem Iron Man CAN'T fix…'…

Stephen leaned forward slightly…

'…but what if I told you, you could…?'…


	19. Chapter 19

***A/N – Hey all! I'm very sorry it's taken me a while to complete this next chapter. Had a great Christmas and New Year, and I'm now working full-time for a bit (part-time contract but someone off long-term sick so I said I'd take the extra, more money for more travelling!) so it's taken a bit to think about I'm afraid. I also didn't want to make it too cheesy because I don't want to end this story yet! I'm aware I'll be out with timings for datelines and things but seeing as I'm messing with time I don't suppose it matters too much…I've had some ideas, please give feedback if you don't like it, I'm always welcoming of critique! Thanks for the messages wanting updates, I appreciate your continued support! Here we go then…won't be proof-read so sorry for errors…!**

 **Chapter 19 – Tony takes a chance**

It took a long, long time for Tony to finally come to a decision regarding the chance Stephen Strange had offered him. A long time staring out over the city, mostly drunk…pondering over and over the chance he had.

But it came at a cost. He had been warned he would have no memory of what had past, there could be no chance, Dr Strange had told him, of knowing the future because of the temptation to change things. All Tony would know…would be that he had something important to change, but he didn't know what….

It had been seeing Charlotte downtown one night. He was out with a business associate at the restaurant he used to take his daughter and end up ignoring her at. Only this time the tables were turned. He smiled, waved and went across to say hello…and received the short shrift from his only child, Charlotte basically told him…she didn't have time to talk to him, she was too busy, goodbye.

It was at that point he realised what he had done. The changes he had tried to make over the years had been too little too late. Tony had jumped around from making an effort to being 'too busy' once more after the first initial attempts when she was still at school but Charlotte hadn't forgotten. She was a woman now in her own right, making a living for herself and Tony wasn't needed. God, it hurt…he was going to die a lonely old man. Hitting his cell phone screen, he activated the call to Dr Strange.

'…hey Dr Oddball, it's me, Tony. Look, I want to do it. Yes, I know the risks, you've explained a millions times. Dammit, YOU offered me this chance, I'm saying I need to take it...the time? God, I don't know, not when she was a baby, that was too crazy, er, maybe six or seven years old, that's when I started finding her too annoying. I know, I know! But I have to give it go, right?...'…

There was a much longer pause as Tony listened to Stephen ranting on over the phone about hell knows what, as Tony sat in his car. He saw Charlotte come out of the restaurant, with the group of friends she was with. She looked so happy, he had never seen her looking so happy… Yep, no doubt about it, it was he who had made her life miserable…

 **oOo**

'Will it hurt?'

'No Tony, it will not hurt. But you have to be quiet, I need to concentrate. Sending you back in time isn't a walk in the park. You chose the right time to do this anyway. Something big is coming, Ironman is going to be needed at his best, and quite frankly, you are far from your best. Your decaying relationship with your daughter is distracting you too much'…the doctor was sat, cross-legged on a rug on his floor, Tony was doing the same, sat opposite him.

'Decaying? I'd say it was pretty much at the fungus stage, just waiting for a slug or two to come and finish it off…'…

He was silenced by Dr Strange putting his hand up, eyes closed, two fingers pointing up…the rest of his fingers curled into the palm of his hand. Tony's breath quickened, now he was a little nervous, as a green haze began to appear around both of them. Tony looked around, he was seeing shapes, numbers, symbols he had never seen before, guess this was it then, a second chance…was he, the amazing Tony Stark, genius…up to the most important job of his life…?

 **oOo**

'You know Charlotte, that gift I gave you was a gift for life'…

The God of Mischief looked far from his namesake as he lounged in Charlotte's couch, amused she had asked him to take the power back again.

'I know, and I know I appear to seem ungrateful, but I'm not using it well. It's….unhealthy to keep dwelling over things that might have been. I've got to move on with my life now…'…passing him a mug of hot chocolate (he seemed to be addicted to the stuff) she then sat opposite him.

Loki sighed deeply.

'Very well, far be it from me to be the one to make you miserable'…he closed his eyes for a second or two, then opened them.

'There we go, all done. Now, how about you tell me how things are going? It's been quite a while since we have spoken…'…

Charlotte had spent a lot of time, like Tony…churning over and over in her mind what was wrong with their relationship. It had taken a lot for her to walk away from him, even when he was with Pepper he just couldn't help himself. The final straw had been his critical comments when she had chosen art as her subject at university. Why did he never get the fact she wasn't, and never would be…the genius he wanted her to be?

The best thing to do then, was to walk away, sever the ties and be happy on her own merit. That's what she thought anyway. Why then, was she still so miserable when she thought about it?

Charlotte picked up her cell phone. There was his number…

WHAT was it that was preventing her from pressing it? Charlotte needed her father more than ever, but was too scared of yet another rejection…

 **oOo**

'Strange, this isn't going to work!'…

Tony felt like he was in a washing machine, his head was pounding, the green lights and symbols were now spinning around and around, was he upright, upside down, he had no clue…

'SILENCE'…

Dr Strange's voice drowned out the rushing wind sounds as Tony gasped for air, something seemed to be sucking the life from his body, he couldn't breathe anymore…his eyelids were getting heavy as the wind noise around him increased…

Then suddenly, silence.

Was he dead?

He didn't know, he didn't know anything anymore, there was no light, just an overwhelming desire to sleep, so sod it, he would sleep, and to hell with the consequences…

 **oOo**

Light.

It was light.

Daylight.

Yeah.

So what was the time?

Better open his eyes and see.

Shit.

Everything seemed to hurt.

Had he been in an accident?

Wait a minute…he was with Dr Strange, he was meant to be sent back in time…but he wasn't meant to remember. Something then, had gone wrong…

'Friday?' he called out, opening his eyes, his room looked, well, familiar but a little different.

'I am afraid it is Wednesday Sir'…the unmistakable voice of Jarvis.

Tony pushed himself up on his elbows.

'Jarvis? What the hell are you doing here?'…

'Well, you put me here Mr Stark. Are you alright? Do you need me to call someone?'

'No, not it's…where's Charlotte?'...

'Charlotte is in her room Sir, she is still asleep'…

Tony lay back, didn't even dare ask the year, Jarvis would have him sectioned he was sure. So what then had gone wrong? Stephen had told him he wouldn't remember, he wouldn't know. If that was the case then, he wouldn't have asked for Friday…Jarvis was still his A.I…Ultron wasn't created yet…

Oh gawd. He knew the future! How the hell was he going to cope with all this? He knew what was going to happen and when…he HAD to make sure he didn't change anything…all except his relationship with his daughter…

Opening his eyes again, Tony sat and swung his legs over his bed. Stared at the mirror. Well, thank god for small mercies at least, he looked younger! Rubbing his eyes with his hands, he stretched…ah, that was better, his muscles were loosening up. Slowly standing he went across to the window, looked out onto a snowy landscape. Typical Dr Strange, sent him back to damn snow? Ah well…

'What day is it Jarvis?'…

'As I said, Wednesday 22nd December Mr Stark. It is 8.15 am'…

'Run down my appointment list please'…Tony walked into his bathroom, turned on the shower.

'You have a 10 AM appointment with Ms Potts then a lunch date with the board of directors'…

'Is the lunch date important?' he called loudly as he stepped into the shower…glad of the hot water, made him feel a whole lot better…

'If you consider discussing your new computer software designs important, then yes, it is. However, it would not be detrimental to postpone it. All your directors have busy schedules today, being so close to Christmas'…

'OK, let's cancel that then, send the usual Christmas wishes and a fruit basket, I dunno…'…

'Very well Sir, I am sure they will be pleased'…

15 minutes later, Tony, now washed, beard tided and unkempt hair tamed…stepped into his daughter's bedroom. In a roundabout way, he had found out from Jarvis that Charlotte was six years old. About the time things began to go wrong, he had sent her to boarding school after this very holiday. Well, that wasn't going to happen that time. Sitting down on the edge of her bed, Tony gently ran his fingers through his tiny daughter's hair. A lump formed in his throat. Not only did he have the responsibility of improving his failed relationship with his daughter, he was painfully aware of the fact he couldn't alter the time line….

'OK Squirt, what do you want for breakfast?'…he pulled open the fridge, pancakes sounded good to him…

'Pancakes Daddy!'…the 6 year old squealed. That sound warmed his dead heart, he cringed when he remembered how he used to hate hearing her annoying squeaky voice…

'Pancakes it is! I've got a treat planned at lunchtime, Mrs Garner will be here this morning then I'll be back at midday'…

'I thought you were busy Daddy, that's what you said yesterday'…Charlotte gazed at him over her glass of milk.

'Oh, I've changed most of today, just for you'…a wide grin. He could see she didn't believe him, he wasn't surprised, she had grown up with his broken promises and always letting her down.

But after a while she beamed at him and finished her milk…

 **oOo**

'…you son of a bitch, you told me I wouldn't remember!' Tony snapped at Stephen Strange, who had conveniently appeared after his meeting with Pepper.

'I am aware of what I said, but something struck the time line as I was attempting the jump. What it was, I don't know of yet, but I'll find out….just remember Stark, whatever you do, do NOT deviate from the path that's already been written…'…

'Easier said than done'…muttered Tony as Stephen stepped back into his portal and was gone once more…

 **oOo**

Charlotte had chosen McDonalds for lunch. Ugh. But she was 6, and that's what she wanted, and Tony was trying to be a better dad, although feeding her that crap can't be good for her health he was sure…anyway, it was a success and of that he was very happy about. Maybe this was the best idea ever, to put right what he did wrong and to…

His phone beeped, he checked the message…

'Tony, where are you? We had a meeting I believe. Steve.' Jarvis didn't mention meetings this afternoon.

The Avengers were relatively young this far back, he racked his brains to try to think what happened next to what the meeting might be about when he looked up to see Loki. Loki….?

The battle of New York. That happened, didn't it? Already, he was sure…

Think Tony….THINK. Goddammit…

'Mr Stark, a pleasure, hello Charlotte, you're looking…young'…he smiled widely.

'What do you want Loki?'

The God of Mischief sat down opposite him, smiled, and stole one of Charlotte's fries, causing the 6 year old to giggle madly.

'…time travel Tony? A last ditch attempt to put right what you screwed up…'…

'It was YOU who sabotaged Dr Strange, wasn't it?'…Tony's eyes narrowed…

'Of course! You think I want to make things easier for you? Strange has given ME the chance as well to do everything all over again! Oh, don't look so worried! New York is in the past, you all cleaned everything up…gives me lots of ideas though, for what I can do next. And who knows now what Charlotte will grow up to be, I gave her a gift once, she asked for me to take it back…'…

'Gift? What gift?'…his voice dangerously low, Charlotte continued to eat her cheeseburger oblivious to the battle of words going on between her father and Loki.

'Oh, just a little thing, she was able to freeze time, gave her a chance to think things through, or remove herself from a situation she couldn't deal with. Only spoil-sport Strange ruined that one and Charlotte asked me to remove that power. Maybe I'll give her a new one. What about the power of flight, or superhuman strength, or maybe even invisibility?'…

Clenching his paper cup of coffee, Tony only realised he was squeezing the life out of it when it's scalding contents spilled out over his hands…

'Daddy? Have you hurt your hand?'…Charlotte grabbed up a paper napkin and started to try to mop up the liquid off his hand, it snapped Tony out of his death stare, Loki was still grinning…

'I'm fine sweetheart, thank you'…kissing her cheek he looked back to see Loki had gone, not walking away, just…gone…

It was becoming increasingly obvious to Tony that not only did he need to avoid changing the time line, alongside being the parent he should have been for Charlotte, he now had to protect her from whatever evil scheme Loki was planning as well…

They said being a parent was never easy, but this was ridiculous…


	20. Chapter 20

****A/N – Hey all. Lots of apologies as life is extremely busy at the moment and finding time to sit and write when my brain isn't mush seems to be very hard these days…but here I am! Thanks so much for the continued support, however, I don't blame you if you've jumped ship! To everyone else, as it's been a while, please be patient whilst I try to drain the mush from my head and refill it with actual living matter…** **And finally, I've seen Endgame, but there are no spoilers and also…my universe doesn't match that of Infinity War! X**

Chapter 20 – NOW what?

Nothing happened for a while. In fact, for a good long while. The Christmas holidays ended and already Tony was making changes in that he didn't send Charlotte off to boarding school. He still found it difficult though, he would be crazy to admit he didn't, he got so busy it was so easy to ignore everything else when in his workshop, inventing stuff and…

Stop it, Tony. He would say it to himself often. He also did his best to show he could support Charlotte in everything she did and when the school show came around, Charlotte had a bit part. A frog for Christ sake! A goddamn frog? His kid, was playing a frog who had one line…however, when he saw her on the stage he couldn't help the immense feeling of pride he felt swelling through him. This was something different and the look of joy on her face told him everything he needed to know…

Time ticked on then. In fact, things seems so much calmer he wondered how the hell he had gotten into the previous mess he had before. Suddenly his business didn't seem so important BUT….Dr Strange and his warnings kept jumping around in his head. DON'T do anything to change the time line. DON'T tell anyone what you have done, blah blah blah…boring boring boring…although everything went completely pear-shaped the day he got a panicked phone call from Luke, through Jarvis….that Charlotte wasn't at school, she had been picked up by someone impersonating him it seemed, and the poor guy was about to lose his mind…

'….Well, who the hell picked her up?...'..Tony was wasting no time at all, forget planes, trains and automobiles, there was only one sure way to get to Charlottes school, and as the Ironman pieces clamped around him, Tony ran out of the base of the tower as he had been waiting to meet someone in the foyer, and much to the surprise of the people coming in and out, he shot into the sky as fast as the suit would allow.

It was a tense couple of hours. Shortly after Tony had landed on the driveway of the school, cars screamed up the drive way, bringing other members of the Avengers to offer support and to also stop Tony killing anyone. Good job they did, Nat got to him first as his was about to explode at the poor principal who was terrified he was going to get fried by Ironman.

'Dammit Tony, calm down and take a step back! Let's go and check CCTV and see exactly what happened!'…

So that's what they did, in the security office, a man looking just like Luke arrived, flashed his I.D, and proceeded to wait for Charlotte who was called from class and got in to the car. Same make, model, colour and exact same registration.

'Did you not think to check with me?' spat an angry Tony at the poor receptionist…

'Well, you called beforehand! At least, it sounded like you AND you gave the password! So did the driver! If they give the password, we let the students go…'…she quailed under his glare, highly upset.

Tony turned and pulled out his phone, direct link to Jarvis…

'Get on the CCTV at the school. I want you to track where that car went, as far as you can, using every available camera you can hack into, and I want you to do it now!'

'Of course Mr Stark. I will call you back the moment I manage to do so'…

 **oOo**

It took a little while. The car it seemed headed out of the school and took the quickest route into the city…and that's where they lost it. Even with the Avengers storming in all guns blazing, the abandoned car was found…along with Charlotte's jacket, it appeared that they had gone underground, literally, and Jarvis was now scanning every security system in the city, but it seemed that both the driver AND Charlotte had disappeared into thin air. They found the car in an old abandoned warehouse, it had become obvious that the best place to hide was in the city itself as someone was one step ahead of the team and knew Tony would be all over the traffic cameras on the highways tracking them otherwise…

'Tony, we'll find her….don't worry'…

Steve's attempts at reassuring Tony fell on fruitless ears. Tony just sat and stared out at the night sky, thinking, thinking….trying to find a way to…

'That's it!'…jumping up, he startled both Sam and Rhodey, who happened to be around at that point in time, watching Tony run headlong towards the lab, obviously had an idea about something or other…

 **oOo**

'…can I go home now?'…

The now 7 year old Charlotte asked the woman who was sat in the room with her, apparently immersed in something or other on her iPad, earphones stuck in her ears, which she pulled out, annoyed…as Charlotte spoke.

'No. Shut up and stay quiet'…

Charlotte did as she was told, eyes filling with tears but didn't dare cry, afraid of what might happen next…

 **oOo**

She thought the man was Luke. He looked like Luke, sounded like him AND he gave the school the password her dad had set up. She had guessed something was wrong the moment she had gotten into the car and the doors automatically locked and Luke hit something in his ear saying only two words…

'Got her'…

'Are we going home?' she had suddenly asked in a panic, and when Luke didn't reply she had tried to open the doors frantically when they stopped at traffic lights. The man just gave a wry smile as he set off again, Charlotte doing her best to open the doors.

It got even worse when the car finally stopped, inside a crumbling building in an as yet 'waiting to be built after it had been flattened' part of the city. 'Luke' got out of the car, opened her door and dragged Charlotte out by the back of her sweater, she dropped her jacket but managed to hang onto her bag as they headed out of the building and into another, down some stairs, along way down….and into some old sewers. Long abandoned, the only water that came down here was rain water, running to the river…but it smelt fusty and old, was also cold and damp….she shivered as she was frog-marched along to the current room she was being held in now. With still no clue as to why this was happening or where her dad was, she tried to be brave as she was dragged to a corner where there was an old battered couch in what appeared to be an old sewage works room, she spoke with what she thought was an authoritative voice, but came out as a squeak…

'…Ironman will kick your ass, then the Avengers will too!'…

Finding herself hoisted high by 'Luke' she regretted what she had just said instantly…

'Daddy won't do jack-shit! Neither will that pack of freaks he associates with! Now sit down there and don't say another thing!'…after that, he dug deep into her bag, found her phone and threw it into a drain, the water taking the phone out into the river and causing Tony to chase shadows after he activated the tracker on it…

 **oOo**

She slept fitfully that first night. It was cold, the place was far from sunlight so would never be warm unless artificially heated. There was a heater but the woman in the room hogged it most of the night, leaving the blankets for poor Charlotte. So she tried to pass the time of day and much of the night by drawing in her scrapbook she took everywhere with her. She drew the room, the woman in the corner and 'Luke' when he came back. The pens she drew with were special ones her dad had made. The colours blended into each other, creating amazing swirls of colour, he made the paint himself, especially for her...keen to encourage her passions unbeknown to her, like before…

 **oOo**

'No, shut up and stay quiet'…

After the woman had responded, Charlotte stood and walked to the door that led to the tiny windowless bathroom. The woman briefly glanced her way then went back to whatever she was watching and Charlotte closed the door behind her and looked around the small bathroom and lent against the sink. She didn't actually need the loo, just needed a change of scenery and as she looked around the grim, pokey, cold and smelly bathroom. Her 7 year old mind doing overtime, she wondered what her dad would do, probably make something out of the toilet and toilet roll holder to blow the door off its hinges! It was at that point she looked up. There was a grate at the top of the wall. Like a…air conditioning duct from years gone by. It was small but….so was she.

Not thinking twice, Charlotte put her backpack on (hadn't left it, felt comforted having it close for some reason) and climbed onto the toilet cistern. The screws to the grill were loose! Better not make a noise though…and within a minute, she managed to get the grill off and with her pen torch, saw that the duct was big enough for her to crawl through… (the pen torch was a 'thing' at school, everyone wanted them, now it was going to help her escape…) and as best she could, Charlotte put her bag up first and scrambled up, hoping the woman in the room was still watching whatever it was on her iPad…

 **oOo**

A well-aimed kick splintered the wood and the man yelled at the woman, realising their prize possession had gone walkabouts, standing on the cistern, 'Luke' yelled Charlotte's name, but there was no way he was getting in there, it was too small…

'Get me maps of this place! Find out where that air duct goes!'…he snapped, pulling his phone out..

'Where the hell am I going to find one of those?'…she shrieked back at him…

'I don't know and I don't care…start with that damn iPad you're always stuck to!'…

He ran back the way he came, up the steps, heading towards the surface, if he lost the Stark kid, he'd loose his head, the boss wasn't one to be crossed…

 **oOo**

Unaware of where she was, Charlotte just kept going. Loosing track of time of how long she had been crawling and it was dark, cold…smelly….she was afraid the battery would run out before she got out….she ended up in a corner, hugged her knees and cried…

'Please come and find me Daddy!' she said, to no-one really but herself, but eventually once her tears subsided, Charlotte once again pushed on, scrabbling through the metal air ducts and suddenly…was that light? Rounding another corner, she came to another old room…with a light from some sort of grill. The exit from the air duct was like the other one, the fastenings had long since rusted and even she could kick it out, although it made hell of a noise. Climbing out, she placed her hands on the grill, it wasn't daylight, it was the moon shining on the river…and that looked like a bridge! Over on the other side, she saw lights of the city, but how was she going to get across the river? Or even get out of here?

'Hello Charlotte, you HAVE gotten yourself into a mess, haven't you?'…

Turning around, she came face to face with the man she remembered had been in MacDonald's that day, the man who ate one of her fries…


End file.
